Season of the Witch (Stiles Stilinski)
by onelifetoliv
Summary: June thought she'd seen it all when a fox spirit possessed her friend and killed another. And she should've known Beacon Hills had more to offer than just evil druids. This time it's a dead pool, a list of all supernatural creatures, including June and her friends, marked for death, all with hefty price tags on their heads. Season 4 of Teen Wolf
1. Disclaimer

Hi lovelies! If you've decided to continue on with the story of June Child after Wicked Witchcraft, then awesome! I hope you enjoy this story as much as the first. But I have to get a few things out of the way before we begin.

First and foremost, _**TEEN WOLF, ITS CHARACTERS, AND ITS DIALOGUE DO NOT BELONG TO ME IN ANY WAY, SHAPE, OR FORM!**_

Second, **while I don't own Teen Wolf, June Child and any other character that isn't in the show but is in this story belongs to me.** Please don't steal her or my plot, that's not cool.

Also I'm not even sure if this is a real book, but I got a lot of ideas on witchcraft from the Witches of Grievance Ridge on Goodreads, so credit for them as well.

The complete story, along with its sequels, are up on my Wattpad account.. I hope you guys like it! Love you lots, kisses. Xx


	2. Season of the Witch Playlist

Season of the Witch - Donovan

Jungle Youth - Young the Giant

Titus Was Born - Young the Giant

Starving - Hailee Steinfeld and Grey feat. Zedd

Angela - The Lumineers

Roman Holiday - Halsey

Never Enough - One Direction

Love Me - The 1975

Jackie and Wilson - Hozier

Nine in the Afternoon - Panic! At The Disco

Silly Boy - The Blue Van

Wrapped Around Your Finger - 5 Seconds of Summer

Moscow - Autoheart

HAPPINESS - NEEDTOBREATHE

All Over - CRUISR


	3. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Not the Worst Party**

I mean, there were worse trips to go on. I could have been stranded in a snowstorm in some remote location in Canada, I could have been stuck in vacation house on some tropical island during a hurricane. Instead, I was in the middle of the Mexican desert with Stiles and Lydia. We were walking around waiting for night to fall, waiting for our plan to commence.

"You sure you guys don't want a bite?" I tried again, munching on the delicious elote I got from a street cart a few paces back. I seemed to be the most calm out of the three of us, despite how we were all pretty sure we were walking into a death trap. Stiles wrinkled his nose at me.

"We're good, June, thanks. You know what could you possibly pay more attention to what we're doing, actually?"

I stopped mid-chew and looked at him. Swallowing, I said, "I am paying attention. We're waiting for nightfall, and if you haven't noticed, it's the middle of the day."

"I noticed, thank you," Stiles bit back, wiping sweat off his brow. I raised an eyebrow at my two friends.

"You shouldn't have worn a jacket if you're so hot, Stiles. We're in the middle of the desert,"

"Noticed that too," He said sarcastically. "I don't get it, why are you so comfortable?"

I thought for a moment, "Probably because I dressed for the weather."

"I'm not sure what you dressed for," Lydia commented, and my gaze turned to her.

"I dressed for a party, Lydia, not for school like you two clearly did." I took another bite of my elote.

"You didn't dress for a party, I've seen you at parties, June. You're dressed like you're going to Coachella. And the flower crown, seriously?"

I swallowed, "Alright, I'm just going to chalk up your attitude to early onset heat stroke. Let's get a move on, shall we?"

We walked around the town a bit more, Stiles and Lydia begrudgingly stopping whenever I saw a neat shop I wanted to stop into. The locals were incredibly nice, and even gave us some tips about good food. Stiles and Lydia didn't seem all that interested, but having been crammed in a jeep for twelve plus hours worked up a serious appetite on my end.

"Where did you say you learned Spanish, again?"

"I picked it up on weekends with some of buddies from the Bronx that were also in my coven," I replied, nearly inhaling my first of two tamales.

"Aren't you worried about food poisoning?" Stiles asked as I munched on my second tamale.

I shook my head, "Nope. I have an immune system comprised of steel, I haven't had a food-borne illness since I was a toddler."

"Is that like a witch thing, or something?" Lydia asked me.

"Kind of. It's just that sometimes people in my coven didn't exactly put away their potion ingredients, and naturally as a curious toddler, I'd get into them. Let me tell you, there are some _weird_ things that I have ingested-"

"Okay, you know what, enough said," Stiles said, and I smiled brightly at him. "C'mon, it's getting closer to dark. We should head over there."

We walked down the dirt roads that lead back to the city center. Stiles and Lydia were growing more tense, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't either. People were bustling about in the city center, and as far as we could tell, no one was trying to threaten our lives.

"This doesn't seem so bad," Stiles said, clasping his hands together.

"It's not the town, Stiles. It's the plan," Lydia said from next to him.

"What's wrong with the plan?" Stiles asked.

"Stiles," I said, "This could be the stupidest plan we've ever come up with. You're aware of that, right?"

"I'm aware it's not our best," He said, not making eye contact with either of us.

"We are going to die," Lydia said. We all started walking down the street Scott told us to earlier, moving somewhat closer together. I got a few unwanted stares that warranted Stiles pulling me slightly closer to him.

"Are you saying that as a banshee? Or are you just being pessimistic?" Stiles asked.

"She's saying that as a person who doesn't want to die," I said plainly, staring ahead.

"Okay, great! Maybe Lydia could now restrict any talk of death to actual banshee predictions, so..."

"This plan is stupid, and we're going to die," I cracked up at Lydia's remark.

"Oh, thank you!" Stiles said sarcastically, scratching the back of his head.

Night fell, and we started walking down one the street where the party was supposedly being held. I glanced over to see Lydia holding her purse close to her, and had to refrain from rolling my eyes.

"Lyds, take it easy with the purse. No one's gonna mug you."

"I'm not taking that chance, it's Tory Burch. Plus, you got it for me as an early birthday gift."

"I just said that so you'd take the bag. I'm not going to get you _just_ a Tory Burch bag for your birthday, Lydia. What am I, tasteless?"

I saw her eyes widen, and before she could say any more on the matter, we walked up to the building. Two men were leaning against either side of the doorway, and when we stopped in front, they walked closer to us.

" _Estamos aqui para la fiesta_ ," I said. They shook their heads at me, and I looked over to Stiles. He dug out the candy-skull-decorated card from his pocket, and held it out for the two men to look over. Once more, they shook their heads, but this time they pointed to a security camera that was hidden in the corner of the doorway. Stiles lifted the card up for the camera to see, and we all heard a buzzing come from the door.

The door swung inwards, and the two men parted for us to walk through. Cautiously, I stepped inside, with Lydia and Stiles following close behind me. When we were all a considerable distance down the hallway, we heard the door from which we entered shut and lock up again.

"Well that's not foreboding," I said, turning an accusatory stare to Stiles. He sighed, then nudged us forward. We all walked down to the end of the hall, and opened up a door. We were immediately hit with a wave of loud music, and the smell of tequila burning our nostrils. We glanced around, and from above us we located Severo. He was side-eying us and speaking into a walkie-talkie.

Stiles' hand slipped into mine, and I looked over to him. He nodded, and I started pulling him along to the bar on the left-hand side. We sidled up to some free counter space, and immediately after we got there the bartender slid tequila shots our way. We were all hesitant to take them, and eventually Stiles started digging out his wallet.

As soon as he did, however, I was met with a firm squeeze on my shoulder. I saw from the corner of my eye Stiles stop in his tracks.

"No," Severo said from between us, "On the house." When no one moved, he simply looked between the three of us. "Most American teenagers don't cross the border to refuse a drink."

"We didn't come to drink," Lydia argued, then fished out the engraved bullet from her bag. She promptly dropped it in the tequila, and Severo nodded at us.

We were escorted to a room off of where the party was taking place. There sat a woman with a knife and a piece of cloth, tearing at the sewn seams. We were sat down in front of her, and she smiled. I had no doubts that this was Araya, as she was heavily guarded by men surrounding all of us.

"Severo hates this music," she began, "Me? I've always loved the music of youth. This kind, especially. It has a savage energy."

"We're here for Derek Hale," I said, not feeding in to her distractions.

"Is that so?"

"We know you have him," Lydia elaborated, shrugging off her jacket. When Araya didn't reply, she continued, "We've heard you can be bought."

At that, Stiles fished the money out of his jacket pocket and laid it out across the table. "It's fifty thousand for Derek."

Araya smiled in a cruel manner, "Now," She set the knife down on the table, "Where does a teenage boy get money like this? The Japanese mafia?"

Around us, the guards started cocking their guns, sending Lydia jumping almost out of her seat. I slowly started chanting familiar spells in my mind, ready to use them at a moment's notice if necessary.

Araya leaned forward, "Not smart to come alone."

Stiles leaned forward in his chair as well, not showing any signs of intimidation, "What makes you think we came alone?"

Araya frowned openly at this, and a brief flash of panic danced across her eyes. "You brought a wolf into my home?"

I smiled, "We brought an alpha."

Araya hopped up from her seat and walked over to Severo. She started muttering in Spanish, loud enough for me to catch a little.

Stiles leaned over from his seat next to me, "What is she saying?" He whispered. I leaned over to him.

"I'm only catching bits and pieces, but it's mostly just alerting security to be on the lookout at the party." Before Stiles could reply, Araya turned back to us.

"My friends," she sighed, walking over to the windows behind her desk, "I don't think you're aware of your poor timing. Do you know what the dark moon is?"

"The part of a lunar phase when the moon is least visible in the sky."

"But do you know its meaning?" Araya pressed.

"Some people say it's a time of reflection," Lydia elaborated, "Or grief."

"Grief and loss, _mija_. I wonder why, when you and your friends have suffered so much loss you would risk it again for someone like Derek Hale."

"Because we don't like to lose," Stiles said. At that moment, chatter came over the radio perched on Araya's desk.

"Front door clear."

"South clear."

"North?" Severo asked. There was silence that followed his question. " _Norte? A donde esta norte_?"

"Stiles," We heard Scott's voice over the airwaves, "Take ten off the table." He did just that, taking a stack of bills and tucking them away in his pocket.

"Maybe you should just take the deal," Lydia suggested.

Araya smiled, "While I'm keen to follow the warning of a banshee, I'm going to have to decline."

"Alright come on," Stiles said, slightly desperate, "Just give us Derek. You don't want him anyway. Haven't you noticed how much of a downer he is? No sense of humor, poor conversationalist. Just come on, take the money."

Araya grabbed the walkie-talkie. "Severo? Show them how the Calaveras negotiate."

Before the three of us could even react, I felt a rod jab into my side. I was just as quickly hit with volts of electricity. I could hear Lydia let out an exclamation of surprise and fear, and Stiles yelling my name. When I could properly think straight, I was a convulsing mess on the floor. Above me, Lydia was rooted to her chair, and Stiles was being held back by another guard. I was still twitching horribly when Araya came to stand over me.

" _Llevar estos dos_ ," She pointed to Stiles and I, " _abajo al sotano. Este sequeda conmigo_."

"No, Lydia!" I tried, still jerking slightly. To no avail, unfortunately, as I was hurled over some man's shoulder. I was carried out of the room, and if I glanced up just enough, I could see Stiles being walked down to wherever we were going. He kept his eyes focused on me, and my eyes flickered between him and the shotgun pointed directly at him.

I heard a door slide open behind me, and I was carried inside. We were inside what was once I'm sure a white tiled bathroom, but was now victim of neglect. Everything about this place screamed dirty and overall just icky. I heard Stiles be shoved in by the other guard, and I was unceremoniously dropped to the floor. A painful feat, as the man carrying me was very tall. I moaned at impact, and hoisted myself over onto my back.

"Hey, easy!" I heard Stiles say. I looked over at him to see the guard grabbing onto his arms, as he struggled towards me. "Hey, what are you doing? Stop, hey, STOP!"

I glanced over at the guard who dropped me to see him take out a syringe. Too weak to even move, I twitched as he injected what I now realized to be mistletoe in the side of my neck. It wasn't enough to knock me unconscious, but I could definitely feel my magic slowly start to slip from my control. The guard stood back up, and was about to walk out with his buddy that was previously holding on to Stiles.

" _P_ _erra_." I spat drowsily, and the guard froze. He turned back around slowly, and I saw he was smiling. In an instant, he whipped out the huge taser and jabbed it into my side once more. I cried out in pain as he jammed it further in between two ribs.

"STOP IT, HEY!" I sighed in relief when I felt I was no longer being electrocuted, and saw Stiles being shoved roughly to the floor. The guards exited the room, and slid the door shut. We soon after heard a resounding click, meaning we were locked inside for the time being.

Stiles was quick to get to his feet, and wasted no time in rushing to my side. I was still twitching horribly when I felt his hands on my face.

"June, are you okay?"

"O-obviously not, Stil-Stilinski," I said.

"Do you know what he injected you with?" Stiles said, stroking my hair, and letting the electricity run its course through my body.

"M-mistletoe. I can't - I can't u-use my m-magic."

It took about a solid five minutes for me to be able to sit up entirely. He half-carried me to a pillar, and propped me against it. He continually put his hands on my face, making sure I was alright and conscious. I kept assuring him I was fine, and after about ten minutes, the doors opened once again.

Malia, Kira, and Scott were all thrown inside before the doors shut and locked once more. Kira and Malia were slowly looking around as they woke up, while Scott was basically an unconscious heap on the floor.

"What is this place?" Malia looked around, then her gaze fell onto me. She immediately scrambled over, "June, are you okay?" She glanced up at Stiles, "What happened to her?"

"When the deal went south they tazed her. I guess because she's a witch, so it was easiest for them just to take her out first. We were dragged in here where they injected her with mistletoe, then tazed her again."

"I'll be okay, Malia." I said. As if to disprove my point, my foot twitched along with my hand. I winced at the pain, then shook my head. "Besides, I'm not the priority here, they kept Lydia with Araya."

"Lydia's with them?" I noticed Kira looking at the exit, and looking around for an escape that likely didn't exist. Her head turned when she heard something.

"He's awake. Guys, he's awake!" Kira exclaimed. With Malia's help, I got to my feet and walked over to Scott. She kept a cautious arm around my waist as we went along.

"Scott, you okay?" Stiles asked. Scott nodded, and together with Kira's help, they sat him up.

Scott looked around in sudden realization, "They don't have him. They don't have Derek."

"We know," Kira said soothingly, "But right now they've got Lydia."

Scott's head snapped to Stiles, "Lydia? What do they want with Lydia?"

"Not entirely sure of that either," I said. His gaze snapped to me, and how I was leaning against Malia.

"What happened to you?" He asked me.

"You should see the other guy," I said. Stiles looked over at me.

"June, the other guy literally walked away. You're the only one who got hurt."

I glared at him, "And now you just shrank my cool-factor down to zero. Thank you for wounding me further, Stilinski."

"Can you - I mean - are you able to get us out of here?" Scott asked, bringing me back to the situation.

I sighed, "Unfortunately, no. They knew I was a witch, and I was given a pleasant shot of mistletoe. I'm not much use to you guys."

"Just as long as you're okay, that doesn't matter," Scott said as he walked over to the door. I assured Malia I could stand on my own, and she gently let me go. I watched as Scott slid his fingers along where the door opens, only to be met with no success of opening it.

"We've already looked for a way out," Kira said, "I think a lot of people have."

"I say when that door opens again, we take out whoever's standing in the way and run for it," Malia said. I stared at her.

"Uh - no, Malia," I told her.

"What? Why not?"

"What about Lydia?" Kira asked.

"What about her?" Malia asked, genuinely confused.

"We're not leaving without her," Scott defended.

" _Why not_?" She repeated.

Stiles and I let out a collective sigh, "Because we don't leave without people. Remember, we talked about this? Rules of the animal kingdom don't apply to friends." Stiles reminded her.

"Is that what you would do as a coyote, leave her for dead?" Kira asked disbelievingly.

"If she was weak and injured, yeah," Malia answered without hesitation, "If hunting had been bad that season, I would eat her. Then I'd leave."

I shared a look with Stiles, who started biting his nails, "Yeah believe it or not that's progress," He told the rest of the group.

"Alright guys, we're not dead yet," Scott said. "And that means Araya wants something."

"But if the Calaveras don't know where Derek is, that means they didn't take him from the loft, right?" I asked.

"Maybe he left on his own," Stiles said.

"Maybe someone else got to him," Scott guessed. As soon as he said it, the doors opened, and in marched several Calaveras. Severo lead the charge, and Stiles immediately brushed me behind him. It seems I was not in fact the target, however, as he tazed Scott and effectively knocked him unconscious once more. Kira was grabbed again, and Scott was carried out. Malia growled at the guards, but they pointed their large guns at us, and left the three of us alone after walking back outside.

We sat there for about ten minutes. Well, Malia sat. I leaned on the sink next to her and watched Stiles pace the room.

"If he keeps pacing like that we might not even have to think up an escape plan, Malia. Stiles'll just burn a hole right through the floor for us to escape through."

"You know June you're so funny, I forget to laugh sometimes," Stiles said, continuing to walk the length of the room. I rolled my eyes at his behavior and walked over to him. I put my hands on his shoulders.

"Hey listen to me, we need to think. Let's think instead of worry."

"Easier said than done," Stiles said, beginning to mess with his hands just so he could move. He turned to Malia and asked, "Do you hear them? Do you hear Scott?"

Malia, who had her eyes closed in concentration for the last five minutes shook her head slowly.

Stiles began to pace again, "Okay, okay. Do you hear Kira, Lydia, anybody? What are they saying?"

"I - I can't. I can't concentrate. I - there's too many sounds and - and voices." I crouched in front of her when I started to hear her panic.

"Okay. It's okay, just breathe. Breathe with me," I started gesturing as I took deep breaths. She wasn't having trouble breathing, but her lack of focus wasn't helping. "You practiced this with Scott before, remember that?"

She nodded, eyes wide and genuine, "I - I'm trying."

"And you're doing great," I encouraged, "You just need to focus on something. Uh - here, look at my eyes," she did and I nodded, "Very good. Or just focus on the sound of my voice, anything you have to do. Just try to concentrate. Concentrate on-" I couldn't get anything out after that, for Malia slammed her lips on mine. My eyes widened in shock, and I stilled. When she pulled away, her eyes were glowing.

"Um - what? What - what was that for?" I stuttered.

"You wouldn't stop talking. I couldn't concentrate with you talking," She said simply.

"Oh right," I said, scratching the back of my head. "Right that's - I do that. I tend to overtalk when I don't really know what to say-"

"You're doing it again."

"Right, sorry," I said, standing up and walking away. When I turned to look at Stiles, his eyes were wide. As wide as I'm sure mine still were.

"Not a damn word, Stilinski. Not a damn word," I said, and he slowly nodded.

I stared at Malia for several minutes more as she listened in on the Calaveras. She looked like she was about to say something when the lights in the room started flickering dramatically. She locked eyes with Stiles and I and nodded frightfully.

"They're killing him!" Overhead, in the very distance, we could all here a faint yell. Then everything seemed to stop. The lights stopped flickering, and Malia stilled once again, listening.

"Wait he - he said a name."

"Who?" I asked.

"Uh - Kate. He said Kate." Stiles and I locked eyes with each other.

"Kate as in-"

"Yeah, no that's impossible. That's impossible, that can't be what he said."

"Why? Who - who's Kate?"

"Well I'm not entirely sure, but I'm pretty sure she's supposed to be dead," I told her, and Stiles nodded.

"She's a hunter," He elaborated. "An Argent."

As soon as he said it, I felt a familiar tug in my stomach before I was sent flying several feet back into the post in the middle of the room."

"June?" Stiles rushed over to me, "What the hell was that? Are you okay?"

I rubbed my head and clumsily stood up, "I'm completely fine."

"What? No you're not, you literally just flew several feet in the air. Is this - is this a new ability?"

I scoffed, "Don't be ridiculous, Stiles. The mistletoe just wore off. My magic came back."

"What - why does it do that?"

"It helps if you think of mistletoe as like a suppressor. Magic isn't supposed to be held down like that so when that substance wears off, it just kinda comes back full swing."

"Full swing as in sends you toppling to the floor every time?"

"Accompanied with a couple punches to my body, or so it feels like," I agreed. I looked up at his bewildered expression and smiled, "Magic isn't always nice you know."

As I was brushing off the grime from my shorts, the doors opened again. I thought it was going to be the Calaveras returning Scott and Kira, but instead it was just the Calaveras. They held the door open and gestured down the hallway.

" _Ustedes pueden ir_ ," They said and I scrunched my eyebrows. Stiles looked back at me as slowly moved around him to face the men in the doorway.

"What did they say?" He asked me.

Not taking my eyes off of them, I answered Stiles, "They said we can go."

Stiles raised his eyebrows, "Go as in - as in leave? Like we're free to leave?"

I nodded, "Yep. Malia, Stiles, stay close to me." They came closer to me, and I cast a shield around them. We slowly made our way out of the room and made our way upstairs and outside. It wasn't until we were back in the public eye did I even think about lowering the shield.

"Stiles, let's go grab the jeep," I offered. We quickly made our way back to where we parked it, and pulled back around to the Calaveras' headquarters. I hopped out of the jeep and leaned against it, waiting for my friends.

The first to come out was Lydia, and I immediately rushed over to give her a hug. I checked her over, and when I was satisfied that she was in tact, I hugged her again. She made her way over to the jeep.

Kira came out next, and walked over to stand next to Malia. Scott came out last, following Araya, and was followed by two other guards. Araya said her piece and made her way back inside. Scott walked over to the five of us, and sighed. It was quiet for a moment before I decided to speak up.

"Well all in all, it's not the worst party I've ever attended."


	4. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: June the Mechanic**

"So what now?" Stiles asked, completely ignoring me.

"She thinks she knows where we can find Derek," Scott explained, shrugging.

"Is she gonna tell us where?" Malia said impatiently, squinting in the sunlight.

"Actually she's - giving us a guide," Scott answered. On cue, we heard the rumble of an engine as a motorcycle cruised down the hectic streets. The woman, who was clad in all black leather despite the desert heat, stopped her bike in front of us and took off her helmet. A familiar face surfaced, but only one I had seen briefly before. In that time, she didn't have the long, jagged scars down her face and neck.

"You know her?" Stiles asked, patting Scott on the chest.

Not taking my eyes off of her, I answered, "Braeden."

Stiles whirled around to look at me, " _You_ know her?"

I shrugged, "Briefly. I mean I only heard her name after Derek explained who saved him from the Calaveras the last time."

"She's a mercenary," Scott went on.

"And right now I'm the only one who's gonna take you to _la iglesia_."

"The church?" Lydia translated.

"What's The Church?" Stiles asked. Braeden looked over to him.

"It's not a place you'll find God."

"Okay-" I began, balling my hands into fists and raising them up in that awkward-mom-dance style, "- total badass moment over and done with. Shall we get moving?"

* * *

"Okay for the record next time, Scott gets to sit on someone's lap," I said grumpily as I squished myself onto Kira's lap. She held her arms tight around me and I used that as a means to steadily plop my legs up onto the laps of the two other girls in the backseat. Lydia shot me a dirty look as I set my converse-clad feet on her, and I narrowed my eyes.

"You're the one who has an actual seat, so not a damn peep out of you, missy," I said, waving a threatening finger. It grew silent, and we eventually settled into an awkward quiet as Stiles followed Braeden down the dirt road. I managed to pull out my phone from my pocket and started playing games on it for a little bit. Malia, obviously disliking the stillness, leaned forward as best as she could with my legs still perched on her lap.

"Okay, I'll ask. Who's Kate Argent?"

Kira's hand slipped out from where it was previously pinned, "Uh - I'd like to know too."

"Well we were at her funeral," Stiles said, glancing over to Scott, "So I'd like to know how she got out of a casket that was buried six feet underground."

"She was never in it," Scott said dramatically. I rolled my eyes slightly.

"She was Allison's aunt," Lydia explained, "And a total sociopath."

Kira glanced back at Scott sympathetically, "You don't have to talk about it now if you don't want to."

Malia, being ever curious and completely unable to tread lightly around sore subjects, shook her head, "Um, yes he does." She proceeded to gesture at him to continue.

"Yeah, she's right," Scott agreed quietly, "You guys should know, you need to know."

"Alright, from what I've gathered about this woman, Kate was the one who set the fire that killed most of Derek's family," I started when Scott took too long to start explaining.

"Some of them survived, like Cora and Peter," Scott continued.

"A very angry Peter," Lydia added bitterly.

"Yeah he's the one who bit and turned me." Scott continued.

"And the one who finally caught up to Kate and killed her," Lydia finished.

"And we saw her buried," Stiles said as he adjusted his hands on the steering wheel.

"No," Scott argued, "We saw a casket remember? She wasn't in it. Yeah the Calaveras had heard that Kate had been clawed by an alpha's claws. They wanted to make sure she was really dead. But she wasn't. Her body was healing more and more as she got closer to a full moon. She was coming back."

"An exceptional feat really," I input, "I mean, to be technically dead in every way, shape, and form, and come back to life? It's pretty much unheard of, except for apparently every werewolf you know." I cringed when I got to the last bit.

"Anyways," Scott continued, "They switched out the bodies. They took her back to Mexico and threw her in that same room we were all just in. If a hunter is bit, they have to take their own life before they change. The Calaveras, they treat the code like law, and they make it their responsibility to enforce it. She ended up creating a diversion to escape."

"Good for her, I wouldn't do it either," Malia said.

"Yeah but would you kill half a dozen people to get out?" Scott contended, "Because that's what she did. She killed six hunters and disappeared out into the night."

"Araya says that every person she's sent out after Kate hasn't come back."

"So she's sending us?" I asked,

"She took Derek, that's why we're going out there."

"What does she even want with Derek anyway?" I pressed.

"Whatever it is, it's bound to be really really shitty." Stiles stated.

"So Kate's a werewolf now?" Kira asked.

"I don't know. There's a saying that sometimes the shape you take reflects the person you are."

"What kind of shape is sociopathic bitch?" Lydia remarked. As soon as her words hung in the air, Stiles' jeep lurched to the side. I was hurdled off of the laps of the three girls and awkwardly stuck in between their shins and the two front seats. When Stiles got control of the jeep again, he immediately pulled over to the side of the road, and hopped out.

Scott followed suit, and turned around to help the four of us get out. He shot the passenger's seat forward, and awkwardly let half of my body sink to the ground. I paused for a second with my cheek pressed to the floor of the jeep before madly scrambling about. I kicked the walls and windows (and maybe almost Malia's head) as I tumbled out of the jeep. Graciously, I landed on solid ground on two feet, with my hands in the air, and a big smile on my face.

Okay, not true. I somehow did a flip though, and landed flat on my ass outside of Stiles' car. Scott quickly extended his hand and I took it gratefully, standing up and brushing away the hair that continually whipped at my face due to the large gusts of wind. I walked out to the side brushing the dust off of my shorts and met Stiles' eye.

"June, could you please not kick the interior of my jeep anymore? I just cleaned the windows."

My face morphed into a giant _what the fuck_ glare, as my mouth fell open. "I'm fine, thanks. For the record, Stilinski, we are taking Ginny's car next time. Where there is _comfortable_ seating for more than five people."

"We couldn't tell Ginny-"

"Yes, we totally could have! She's been advocating for me to go on a road trip since I turned sixteen! She was over the moon when I told her I was going to Mexico!"

"Well - wait, Ginny knows we're here?"

"What happened?" Braeden interrupted, as she finally pulled over and got off her bike. Stiles went back to investigating his jeep, Scott and I doing the same.

"I don't know, it felt like we hit something," Stiles answered.

"Scott, we need to get there by night," Braeden scolded. "It's too dangerous otherwise."

Scott spent a couple moments weighing the pros and cons of leaving all of us behind.

"I could go," I offered Scott. Everyone looked back to me, Stiles almost snapped his neck looking back at me.

"No!"

"What, why not?"

"Because - n-no!"

"Oh, well in that case, nevermind," I said sarcastically.

"Your boyfriend's right," Braeden said, and I looked to her. "Not entirely sure we should have a witch in an ancient Aztec temple without at least scoping the place out first."

"Fine," I said, crossing my arms. I looked over to Scott, "I guess it's on you now."

Stiles turned back to Scott as well, "Go," He said, waving his arms.

"Not without you!" Scott refused.

"Dude, someone needs to find Derek," Stiles argued, "We'll figure something out, we always do. Just go."

Scott glanced back my way and I nodded at him. For good measure, I gave a thumbs up. He spent a few moments more debating it when Braeden started walking back to her bike. Sighing, Scott nodded and walked over to her. Kira was quick to rush after him.

"June, can you grab the toolbox out of the trunk?" Stiles asked he propped open the hood of his jeep. I walked around to the back and popped open the trunk. Sifting around through dirty socks and lacrosse sticks, I dug out the desired toolbox. When I got back to the front, Scott and Braeden had left, and Stiles was already assessing the damage to the smoking engine.

"Do you know what you're doing?" I asked, handing him the tools.

"Yeah, totally," Stiles said, scratching at his temple.

"Bitch-ass liar says 'what?'" I mumbled.

"What?"

"Nothing!" I said more audibly, pulling my long hair back into a bun. I watched as Stiles worked on the jeep a bit more, and Malia walked along the frame of the car. She stopped suddenly at one of the front tires, and crouched down. She reached her hand in under the frame and above the tire.

"Stiles, I don't think we hit something," She grunted, as she pulled something loose. "I think something hit us." She stood up to show us a giant bone grooved and ridged near the top, but sharpened at the bottom. Malia handed it over to Stiles, who in turn handed it over to me. I examined it, turning it over in my hands.

"Any idea what that could be?"

"Well it's a bear claw. At least the bone part is, but it's been carved down, and sharpened."

Stiles narrowed his eyes at it, "Okay, well any idea what could have done that?"

"Well, depending on the branch of mythology and the region that we're in I-" I paused, remembering back to something that Chris Argent once said before.

 _"Werewolves, berserkers, I could easily add a nogitsune to the list."_

"Oh no," I said.

"Oh no?" Stiles repeated, "Oh no? What - what's 'oh no,' June?"

I turned to face him, my eyes slightly wide, "Um - if it's what I think it is, we might want to get this jeep up and running real fast."

* * *

The jeep was not up and running real fast. Night had fallen, and at this point, all was still. Stiles was currently on top of the jeep's engine, digging at it in attempt to make it work. Lydia had been assigned to flashlight duty, and I was standing next to Kira watching them work. Malia was keeping an eye on our surroundings for us.

"Maybe we should just walk," Lydia suggested.

Stiles took the screwdriver that was currently residing in his mouth out, and glared at the ginger, "Hey I will never abandon this jeep, you understand me? Ever! Ever."

"Okay hang loose, Mother Goose," I said, and everyone stopped to look at me. I crossed my arms, "Well it got you to shut up."

"Work faster, Stiles," I heard Malia say from behind me, "There is something out here with us."

"Aliens?" I asked hopefully, "Please say aliens."

"June, enough with the aliens-"

"I will not!" I argued like a child, "The truth is out there, and I am determined to find it and continue the long line of work that Fox Mulder has worked so hard to procure to the public!"

"June-"

"It will not be in vain, Stilinski!"

"Both of you, save it for date night, alright?" Lydia said, and my eyes widened as I blushed, "Stiles, get back to work."

"Well I totally would if you could just please hold the flashlight still for a second. It's really hard to see anything when you keep shaking it like that!"

Lydia shook the flashlight more to prove a point, "I'm shaking it like this because we're in the middle of nowhere with your broken down jeep, and we're being attacked by _yet another_ razor-clawed monster. And I'm terrified."

"Well just be slightly less terrified," He contended. I rolled my eyes at him as he went back to fixing his jeep. "Here, hold this," He handed me a part of his jeep that was pretty sizable.

"What is this?"

He glanced up at me, "I don't know, I'm hoping it's not important."

"Oh, God," Lydia trailed off. I took the part and peered inside at the engine.

"You know I could totally just-"

"We're fine, June! I've got this." It would have been perfectly believable had it not been followed by an odd noise that came from the engine. We all looked down at it, then I glanced back up at Stiles with a raised eyebrow.

"Yep, I've still got this."

Kira walked over to us and put her katana in the light being given off from Stiles' headlights. She reflected the light to cast a glance at our surroundings, and stopped when she saw something move in the distance.

"Did you see that?" She asked me and I nodded. Before anyone could do anything, Malia let out a growl and took off running.

"Malia, wait!" Kira yelled, and promptly ran after her.

"Hey, Malia!" I yelled as well. I was about to make a dash for it when Lydia grabbed my arm. I turned around to see that she had Stiles' arm in her grasp as well.

"You, fix the jeep," She pointed the flashlight at Stiles. I made to move again and she gripped my arm tighter, "June, focus! If something comes after us, you need to protect us. And you also need to make sure that Stiles doesn't fuck up his jeep any more than he already has." I sighed, and nodded at her.

"Stiles, time is of the essence here, so move quickly." He nodded and screwed in what he thought must have been something that came loose. Unfortunately, all that happened instead was another loud clunk and the headlights went out on his jeep.

"And that would be the battery," Stiles trailed off.

I rolled my eyes, "Alright, you're done," I told him. Before he could even reply, I magically hoisted him in the air and planted him a solid five feet away from the jeep. By the time he got up, I had already taken off my shoulder bag, and handed it to Lydia. Opening the bag, I pulled out a spare flashlight. Stiles marched up to us and before he yell at me, I wrenched the screwdriver out of his grasp and thrust the flashlight into his hands.

"You - you are not fixing this jeep anymore. Hold the flashlight over the engine like Lydia is doing and keep quiet," I ordered. Begrudgingly, Stiles did so, and I crawled under the jeep.

I noticed he basically unscrewed his battery loose, so I tightened up a few nuts and bolts to get it into place again. Reaching for the part that Stiles had previously removed, I placed it back in the empty place it was supposed to go. Lastly, I told Stiles to hand me his flashlight. He rolled it under the jeep, and I caught it, ready to assess the damage.

It turns out that the bear claw (hopefully not belonging to a berserker) was lodged in the radiator of his jeep. Solving the problem that was the damage, I moved to fix it all together. Rolling the flashlight back out, I yelled for Lydia to toss me the lighter in my purse. I instructed Stiles to go grab the coolant from his trunk, and I felt the lighter hit my side. I flicked it several times when finally, there was a flame.

Magically, I manipulated the flame to grow larger and collect in my hand. I moved the ball of fire towards the radiator where I could see the metal melting down. Telekinetically, I welded the hole in the radiator shut. Now instead of a gaping hole, was a smooth patch of cooling metal. I extinguished the fire in my hand and crawled out from under the jeep.

Stiles came back around from the trunk holding some coolant in his hands. I snatched it and filled up the car with some coolant.

"Stiles, go start the jeep, it should work now." He did as I asked, and started the jeep up. Thankfully, it worked, and the engine roared to life. Lydia climbed in the backseat, and I waited for Kira and Malia to come back. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw the two racing back to us, and I ushered them into the jeep as well. When everyone else was in, I climbed into the front seat, and Stiles took off into the night.

I didn't even have time to appreciate that I wasn't sitting on someone's lap before I rounded on Malia. "You - you please don't do that ever again!"

"Do what?" She asked.

"We - we thought you just took off, we thought you were running."

"I was running," She stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"No, he means that we thought you were leaving." I explained to her.

"I wouldn't leave without you guys," Malia said, glancing between Stiles and me.

"What - really?" Stiles asked.

She shook her head, "No I would never leave without you." She looked to Kira and Lydia, "Them I would leave."

I sighed, "Yeah it's progress."

Lydia looked down at Malia's side, "That doesn't look good."

"It's okay," she assured her.

"Are you sure? It looks pretty deep."

"No, I can already feel it healing," Malia said.

"You didn't see anything?" I asked her.

She shook her head. "Barely. It had a strong scent, though."

"Like what?" Stiles asked.

"Like death."

I nodded, "All the more reason for us to get the hell out of Mexico. Stiles, could you maybe drive a bit faster?"

Stiles made a face, and shifted gears. We sped along down the road and eventually reached what looked like an abandoned town. Upon closer inspection, the buildings were all reduced to rubble in some way.

"Where the hell are we supposed to find them," Stiles muttered, tapping his thumbs on the steering wheel.

"I'm not a genius - well, yes I am - but I'm fairly certain they're going to be in that big church that's the only thing still standing in this town," I said aloud, pointing directly ahead of us. The headlights shone on the church, and Stiles pulled over and stopped completely.

He cut the engine as we saw movement up ahead. I hopped out of the jeep and opened the backseat up before racing over to what I could now recognize as Scott and Braeden carrying Derek between them. At least I assumed it was Derek, this one had no facial hair, and looked to be about our age.

Stiles' eyes widened considerably, and I nudged him, "I'm not just seeing things, am I? That-" I gestured to Derek, "- That's a thing?"

He nodded slowly, eyes still wide and still on Derek. I heard Malia, Kira, and Lydia run up behind us.

"Is that him? Is that Derek?" Malia asked us. I shrugged, eyes glancing up and down the figure of Derek-slash-Benjamin-Button.

"Sort of," I heard Stiles answer, and I shook my head.

"Okay well he is so not sitting on my lap on the ride back."

* * *

It was pouring rain by the time we got back to Beacon Hills, quite the opposite weather from what we were experiencing in Mexico. We dropped Kira and Malia back off at their respective homes before rushing over to the animal clinic.

Scott hoisted Derek up over his shoulder and we all trudged inside. Deaton, who had been called previously, was waiting for us in the exam room. He cleared off a metal slab and Scott gently set Derek down on it. We adjusted him, and soon enough, Lydia, Scott, Stiles, Deaton, and I were huddled around him.

"Wow," Deaton said, his eyes wide.

"Wow? Wow as in, 'I've seen this before and I know exactly what to do,' kind of wow? Cause that's the kind of wow we're hoping for," Stiles asked.

Deaton offered a shaky smile, "I think you may be overestimating my abilities."

I grabbed onto his hand, "He's cold. Really cold." Deaton grabbed his other hand, and started a brief assessment. Scott looked over him worryingly.

"Do you think this is permanent?"

"I'm not sure a medical diagnosis is even adequate. This is well beyond my experience."

"Maybe we should try to get a hold of Max Tivoli," I joked. I was only met with confused, semi-hopeful glances.

I rolled my eyes, "He's like the original Benjamin Button, okay? He doesn't exist." I looked over to Deaton, "So what do we do with him?"

"Until he wakes up, probably not much," Deaton answered. "It might be best to leave him with me. He'll be safe here."

"You mean from Kate," Stiles commented.

"If she's alive and she is what you say she is, she won't be able to walk past that gate."

"But why would she want to do this to him?" Lydia asked.

"Knowing Kate, it's probably for a reason that won't be any good for anyone but her."

"And bad for everyone else," Stiles trailed off, and Deaton nodded.

"You guys should probably go home," Deaton told us. "He doesn't look to be in any danger. So maybe the rest of you should get some sleep? It is a school night." I glanced around at everyone else, and all their faces read tired, mirroring my own. "And you all need to start taking care of your own lives again."

"Someone should stay with you," Scott argued, and again, Deaton nodded.

"I'll stay," Lydia piped in. I whipped my head over to her, along with Scott and Stiles. "My grades are fine! Despite missing a few classes..."

"Yeah I am so not okay with this," Stiles said. Lydia rolled her eyes.

"Guys, go."

"No. Anyways, what if - what if something happens? Like on the off chance that Kate comes here?"

"Then I'll stay with them," I offered. Stiles began shaking his head vehemently.

"Hell no. Not okay with this."

"I'm serious," I said. "If Kate comes back, then I can protect them long enough for you guys to get back here. Not to mention that out of the four of us, Lydia and I can actually afford to miss school."

"Totally one hundred percent not okay with this," Stiles argued against me.

"Stiles look, either I stay here, or you drive me home to get more clothes and head back to your place," I refuted, "And I'm not ready to go back home just yet." I looked at Stiles, who flinched. He glanced over at me sympathetically, recalling that terrible day from one week ago.

* * *

 _"Really now Moony, won't you let us in? The California air has always been rough on the skin, you know this."_

 _Still not moving, I just stared at them. My parents were at my doorstep in Beacon Hills. The same parents who cast me out. I was too shocked to do anything._

 _"Moony?"_

 _"June?" Stiles asked from behind me, and opened the door a little bit more. My parents took that as their cue to walk in, brushing past Stiles and I into the entryway. I slowly turned around, and watched as they scrutinized my home._

 _My mother wrinkled her nose a bit, "Well you can certainly see Ginny's taste shining through, but overall, the place is quite modern. Where's the library?"_

 _When she was received with only blank stares, she scoffed, "Oh please, June. You've always strived for academics, you think we thought you stopped practicing your magic as soon as you came over here?"_

 _"I'm sorry, did you two say you were her parents?" I turned to Stiles as he stepped closer to them._

 _My mother extended her hand to Stiles, "Evelyn Astor, and my husband Robert. I'm so sorry, I don't think I caught your name."_

 _"Uh - Stiles." My mother raised her eyebrows up to prompt him, "Stiles - Stilinski."_

 _"Stiles Stilinski? I have to say that's a first. And are you a friend of June's?"_

 _"No," I muttered quietly. Everyone's gaze turned to me. I began to shake with anger, "No." I repeated more firmly._

 _"No? He's not your friend?"_

 _"No as in no, you can't be here. You have no right to come here and - and just talk to me like nothing has changed!" My voice was growing louder and louder, "And you definitely cannot come here and talk to my family. What are you doing here?"_

 _"Well, Moony, we missed you," My father said, with a fond smile on his face._

 _"Yeah, bullshit," I spat._

 _"June, we risked our lives and reputation to come see you! Surely that warrants a slightly warmer tone."_

 _"I'm still calling bullshit. You couldn't risk your reputation for your own daughter once before, what makes you think I'd believe you would do it now?"_

 _"Well would you believe us if we told you we were here on Council business?"_

 _"The same Council that cast me out? What could they possibly want out here?"_

 _My mother straightened up a bit, "Well June, as it so happens, the High Priestess would like to extend the invitation for you to move back to New York City."_


	5. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: You Come into my House**

I looked to Scott in a pleading manner, and he nodded at me. Stiles was still shaking his head as Scott walked around the slab and pulled him along.

"Alright just cause you're stronger..." I heard Stiles say as the two of them left the animal clinic. I turned back to give Derek my full attention. Lydia took over in holding his hand and was looking over his face.

"He looks a lot nicer at this age," She said quietly and I smiled.

"Yeah, probably not as vicious either," I agreed. I turned to Deaton, "What are we supposed to do in the meantime?"

Deaton sighed, crossing his arms, "Well we've done all we can. I need to tend to my other patients in the meantime. Maybe a little later we can try and see what is going on with him."

Lydia and I nodded as Deaton went into the back. I sat down in a chair next to Derek and rubbed my hands over my face. Yawning, I looked over to Lydia. She glanced over to me tentatively.

"You okay, Lyds?"

She nodded slightly, "Just worried about Derek. And you."

"Me? What for?"

"Did all of that really happen? What they told you, why they invited you back, is it all true?"

"Unfortunately."

* * *

 _"I'm sorry, invite me back? To New York?"_

 _"That's what I just said, June. It would be purely for academic reasons, however."_

 _"Why? Why should I come back?" I asked my mother, eyes wide._

 _"Well as you know, we conducted tests on you to investigate the extent of your power."_

 _"That's putting it very lightly, Evelyn," I told her, "It was closer to torture."_

 _"Always so dramatic, June. Anyways, the information we gathered we have been researching intently. Even after you left."_

 _"After I was cast out by the two of you."_

 _"Nuances. Will you let me finish?"_

 _"If you get to the point quicker," I said, grinding my teeth._

 _"Would you care to let us explain in a more comfortable setting, Moony?" My father asked, and I flinched at the nickname._

 _"No, you'll tell me right here, right now," I snapped, my voice echoing around the foyer._

 _My mother folded her hands in front of her in a way I recalled meaning that she was uncomfortable. "Very well," She started, "The research we collected was studied extensively, and many tests ensued to figure out what had happened to you."_

 _"Tests? You experimented on other witches?"_

 _"Oh don't be ridiculous, June, that'd be barbaric."_

 _"Right, barbaric," I said disbelievingly, my anger growing by the second._

 _"Well you see, after all the research we conducted, we have come across the conclusion that you were only the beginning."_

 _"The beginning of what?" I heard Stiles ask._

 _My father shifted his weight to his other foot uncomfortably, "Well, Moony, the beginning of the next generation of witches."_

 _"What do you mean?"_

 _"It's a working theory, but we think that you and your magic might be the start in an evolutionary process."_

 _"Evolutionary how? Get to the point."_

 _"We think that witches down the road will develop more than two abilities as well. That it will become the norm in magic, and it all started with you. So, you coming back would be to further prove that theory, and we'd love to continue researching-" My father was cut off by a glass shattering to the side._

 _A mirror that hung in the foyer shattered, and my parents and Stiles turned to look at it. I kept my stare on my parents, my anger blurring my vision to red._

 _"So you're saying that you think I was cast out for no reason at all? That this is going to eventually happen to all witches?"_

 _"Yes."_

 _I could feel my hands trembling, and it got harder to breathe, "All that fear, all that anger, the hysteria, the paranoia, everyone I had grown up around save Ginny turning against me, for_ nothing _? You, my parents, cast me out, for NOTHING?"_

 _"Now June-"_

 _"And now you want me to go back?" I bellowed, "You want me to go back and - and be some permanent science experiment? For the furthering of_ your _knowledge? That's the only way I could return to New York is just to be your guinea pig?"_

 _"June, I think you're misunderstanding-"_

 _A picture frame flew off the wall and shattered to the ground. I had never let control of my magic disappear before, not once in my entire life. In that moment, I didn't care. I was too angry to care._

 _"No Evelyn, Robert, I think_ you _are misunderstanding just how welcome you are in this house."_

 _My mother's face twisted in anger, but before she could open her mouth, the door to the garage opened. Ginny's voice floated down the hallway._

 _"June, which one of your friends drives the Range Rover again?"_

 _"None of them, Ginny," I answered her, not taking my eyes off of my parents. To my left, I felt Stiles slip his hand into mine._

 _"Where are you?" Ginny asked from the kitchen and I told her. I heard her footsteps grow louder._

 _"Well if that car doesn't belong to your friends, why is it in front of - Evelyn? Robert?" Immediately, Ginny was next to me, staring in disbelief at my parents._

 _"Ginny, always nice to see you."_

 _She let out a breath, "I have half a mind to reach out to my old contacts in New York to let them know you're breaching the coven's rules. You can't be here."_

 _"We're here on order of the High Priestess, Ginny. She knows exactly where we are."_

 _"Why in the hell does that woman need you out here?"_

 _"That's Council business," Robert answered before I could. "It's between us and June, not something you need to concern yourself with."_

 _"They wanted to invite me back to New York, Gin." I said defiantly._

 _Ginny scoffed, "Like hell. What's the catch?"_

 _"June, you're breaching Council rules by telling Ginny this," Evelyn tried._

 _I rolled my eyes, "It's not my Council. I don't have a Council, much less a coven."_

 _"Why is June invited back to New York," Ginny said frustratedly._

 _"Again, Ginny, it's none of your business."_

 _"You made that girl my business the minute you introduced me to her."_

 _"This is a family matter, Ginny, if you could please-"_

 _"I'm more her family than you will ever be, and I have the_ adoption papers _to prove it! Or do you not recall how you threw her out on New York's doorstep to fend for herself without even batting an eyelash?"_

 _"We gave her half of the Astor fortune-"_

 _"Oh sure, give her money. That's what she needed. June needed a family, and you denied her of it. Anything regarding your relationship with June will now and forever go through me, so you better fucking tell me why the hell she's been invited back to New York City."_

 _"They - uh - they think that more witches will end up like June," Stiles said unsure. "They wanted to bring her back to test that theory."_

 _Ginny's nostrils flared and her lips turned white from pressing together so tightly. "You want to continue experimenting,_ torturing _her? No, no absolutely not. Rot in hell."_

 _Evelyn reached her breaking point. I saw her hand flicker over to Ginny and I quickly cast a shield in between the two of them._

 _"You touch one hair on Ginny's head," I said menacingly, "I will rip out all of yours. And I don't need magic to do it."_

 _"Our flight leaves in two weeks," Robert started, "We hope we can convince you to change your mind."_

 _I lowered the shield slowly when I saw my mother calm down, "I won't. And I don't care where you stay, just get out of our lives."_

 _"Well, we hadn't booked a hotel, and this looks like a charming place to stay," Evelyn stated._

 _"Like hell," Ginny said._

 _Evelyn turned to her, "Need I remind you how fortunate you two were in regards to your expulsion from the coven? We kept everything quiet-"_

 _"So you wouldn't ruin your reputation."_

 _"Do not interrupt me June Florence. As I was saying, we kept everything quiet. And that also entails the news from escaping to other covens across the country. We would simply hate for you to have all the covens of Northern California breathing down your neck like ours did. It's possible they might even want you out of their region as well after figuring out what you can do."_

 _I tensed up, "What are you saying?"_

 _"Well mum's the word if we stay here with you two."_

 _I looked over to Ginny, frightened. She looked angry and upset, and I couldn't blame her. I also couldn't risk the chance that she would be in danger of other covens as well. We'd both worked so hard to build a new life here, and I would be damned if I let my parents take that away from me too. Resigned, I nodded._

 _Ginny turned her steely glance back over to my parents, "There's a bedroom and bathroom in the basement. Carry in your own damn luggage."_

 _My mother plastered on her best socialite smile, "Wonderful. Robert, come help me with the luggage." Together, they walked back out the front door. Ginny pulled on my free hand and walked me into the kitchen._

 _"June, listen to me, just because they're staying here, doesn't mean that you have to. Is there anywhere else that you can stay for tonight, or for a few days?"_

 _"Me," Stiles said, and I spun around. In all honesty I completely forgot he was there. "She can stay with me."_

 _"Stiles I can't impose on you like that."_

 _"There's no imposition, June. My house is close to Ginny, but far enough away from your parents. We have a spare bedroom, it's no trouble."_

 _"But your dad-"_

 _"My dad loves you, okay? He goes on and on about it."_

 _"Your dad talks about me?"_

 _"Not really the point here, June," Ginny said. I looked back to her and nodded._

 _"Will you be okay?" I asked her._

 _"Of course I will be. I can handle snobby socialites, June. I used to live among them."_

 _I gave her a small smile and hugged her. As soon as I let her go, I grabbed Stiles' hand and walked upstairs. When we got to my room, Stiles sat down on my bed and I went into autopilot. Grabbing random things I would need, I took a duffel bag out of my closet. I pulled out clothes to last me for about a week and folded them neatly._

 _It was too neat, actually. I started becoming obsessive about packing my clothes. I remembered the last time I had become obsessive about packing was when I was leaving New York. I packed everything so meticulously out of anger and spite, and it broke my heart knowing I was doing it again. I marched into my bathroom and gathered up everything I would be needing, and I packed it in as well._

 _I grabbed another bag and opened it up before throwing some shoes into it. I ignored Stiles and his remarks about how many clothes I have when I went over to my desk. Books upon books on magic were stacked up on next to opened notebooks filled with research and random pens scattered about. All the notebooks and books were promptly slammed shut, and I began carrying them over to my second duffel. Cautiously, I set them inside and zipped up the bag._

 _I then went back to my desk and opened my backpack, piling in all the schoolwork that was already done. I zipped it up and threw it on my bed next to Stiles. I ignored the worried look on his face and sat down next to him as I began to lace up my converse. I was pretty vigorous with it, and I think Stiles took that as a hint to not talk for a minute._

 _I finally pulled out my computer charger and phone charger and shoved them in a side pocket of one of the duffels. I threw on a jacket and began hoisting bag after bag over my shoulder._

 _"Oh, I can help with-" He stopped when he saw my face. I was too numb to really argue with him, but I shook my head adamantly._

 _"It's fine, I've got it. Lead the way," I spoke quietly. Stiles took that as his cue to walk out of my room. I followed suit, and shut the door to my bedroom. I clambered down the stairs with all of my things, and looked around for my parents. I let out a small breath of relief when I heard their voices going down the stairs into the basement. Looking around the foyer, I sighed when I saw all the broken glass. I made sure to magically repair the mirror and put the picture back up on the wall before walking out the front door._

 _Stiles was waiting for me on the path leading up to my house and he nodded when he saw me come out. Together, we made our way across the street into the Stilinski household. Stiles guided me upstairs, the entire time muttering about the bed not being made._

 _I set my stuff down once he showed me into the guest room, only half-listening to him as he explained where the bathroom was, and that he had texted his dad about me staying for a bit. I started unpacking my books and placing them on the desk that was in the room, as well as the notebooks and school books. As I did so, I saw from the corner of my eye Stiles scrambling about to put sheets on the bed and make it for me._

 _I finished unpacking about the same time Stiles finished making the bed. He was smoothing out the creases and invited me to sit down. I did so, and he sat down next to me. It was quiet for about five minutes, and I stared at the empty bags piled on the floor._

 _"So - uh - my room's just down the hall, but you already knew that. If you want a minute, I can-"_

 _"I'm sorry," I mumbled, not caring that I interrupted him._

 _"What?"_

 _"I'm sorry," I said louder. "I'm sorry - I - I didn't mean to lose control like that."_

 _"That was you losing control? Just some broken glass?" He was clearly trying to make me feel better about the whole situation by using a lighter tone, but I wasn't sure it was working. "Out of all of my friends who have ever lost control that is by far the most mild. I mean Scott actively tried to kill me when he lost control, I'd say that's far worse..." Stiles trailed off when he heard me sniffling. He scooted closer to me._

 _"June?"_

 _"It just - it was all for nothing."_

 _"What was?"_

 _"My parents, my coven, my home, everyone and everything I had ever known turning against me, casting me out, and now I find out it's all for nothing. They just - they threw me to the side like I was volatile and catastrophic and now they're saying that every witch will potentially be like me from now on. What - what-"_

 _I couldn't even finish before I collapsed into sobs. All the anger, all the frustration, all the resentment and sadness that I was feeling over my parents return and the reliving of my expulsion from New York came bubbling to the surface. I loathed it, I loathed that they were here, and that they were telling me I could go back, after nearly a year of being gone._

 _I felt Stiles grab onto my waist and pulled me closer to him. I turned further into him and started crying into his neck, not caring that the tears were dripping onto his flannel. He put a hand to the back of my head and leaned closer to me, whispering reassurances into my ear._

 _I wasn't sure when we laid down on the bed, but there we were, me with my arms wrapped around his upper torso, nose to nose with the boy I loved, feeling nothing but safe and calm._

 _"Thank you," I whispered, before shutting my eyes and falling asleep in Stiles' arms._

* * *

"Yikes."

"Yeah," I agreed, nodding.

"Well in all fairness, there is an upside to this."

"What?"

"Staying one room down from your lover boy," Lydia teased as she elongated the 'ove' in lover boy. I rolled my eyes and nudged her.

"No, but in all seriousness, had you not been cast out, you'd have never met the most important person in your life."

"Stiles is not the most important person in my life, Lyds," I said exasperatedly.

"I was talking about me, dumbass." I looked over at her and we burst into fits of laughter.

"That's true," I told her.

"But I mean it, June. You'd've never met any of us if you didn't come out here."

I sighed, looking back to Derek's unconscious form, "I know, and I don't regret being here. But it still hurts. It still hurts a lot."

"How about you two try and get some sleep?" Deaton said, emerging from the back, "If he wakes up, I'll let you know."

Nodding, I leaned my head up against the wall and slouched further into the chair. Shutting my eyes, I distinctly remember feeling Lydia sit down next to me and getting comfortable before I finally fell asleep.

* * *

I woke up with the sun shining and my head on top of Lydia's, who had her head resting on my shoulder. I sighed, stretching out my legs and arms while yawning rather loudly. In that moment, Lydia's head rolled off my shoulder, and she was jolted awake. I took that as my opportunity to pop my neck and stand up. Looking over I saw Derek still passed out, and I shook my head in disbelief that he was actually in that state.

Deaton walked over to Derek and I started stretching out my back. I almost groaned in pleasure at the audible and deep pops that rippled up and down my spine. I looked at Deaton again and saw he was checking Derek's pulse while staring at his watch.

"Anything?" I asked him.

"His heart rate is alarmingly high," He stated. Worryingly, I glanced over to Lydia, and we both made our way over to Derek's other side.

Lydia grabbed his arm, "He's a lot warmer now."

"Lydia, June, I'm going to try something. Lydia, I want you to keep holding his hand if that's okay." Lydia nodded, and Deaton grabbed a scalpel from his tray. Deaton gripped Derek's elbow and with the other hand made a clean incision on his forearm. Well it would've been clean, had the incision not immediately healed as Deaton was cutting him open.

Wide-eyed, I stared at the smooth patch of skin. "That healed really fast."

"Unusually fast," Deaton agreed.

"What does it mean?" Lydia asked.

The vet shook his head, "I'm not sure. Let's try something else. Lydia, grab me a five millimeter syringe from that top drawer over there..."

He and Lydia both went to the table behind me. I stayed with Derek, clearing away the blanket that was causing him to sweat. As soon as I saw the two others get behind me, I felt Derek's arm that I was holding move considerably. Looking down, my eyes widened as I saw his claws were bared.

"Guys," I muttered, and they slowly turned around as Derek sat up. Protectively, I moved in front of Lydia and Deaton while Derek looked around.

"Derek?" I tried, as his breathing grew labored.

"Derek?" Lydia repeated.

"Derek, are you alright? Can you hear me?" Deaton asked and Derek looked up at us, eyes glowing blue.

"Derek, you're safe," He flinched as I said his name. Deaton and Lydia both tried his name again, and before any of us could do anything, Derek lunged forward. Shoving Deaton and Lydia back, I felt Derek grab onto my bare arms and throw me across the room. For the second time in my life, I collided with a glass cabinet in the animal clinic.

Hyped up on adrenaline, I looked up at Derek, who was slowly approaching the two humans. I threw up a shield right as Derek lunged again, and he stumbled back. I magically picked him up and threw him towards the door, hoping he would get the hint and leave. He did, and was quickly out the door.

Lydia rushed over to me, and helped sit me up. Her and Deaton helped me up and to the slab. I turned to face them as they sat me down, and my eyes locked with Lydia's.

"Call Scott," I said before assessing the long claw marks that decorated my upper arms, and covered my forearms in blood.


	6. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: Who Knew Miguel Spoke Spanish?**

I heard the sound of sneakers squeaking against linoleum as Deaton finished bandaging up my first arm. He moved around to the second as Scott and Stiles ran into the doorway. Well more like Scott running into the doorway and Stiles vaulting over him before falling to the floor. I smiled a bit before hissing at the disinfectant that Deaton used to clean up my arm. Stiles raced over to me.

"June, are you okay?" He said, inspecting my bandaged arm before looking over at the arm Deaton was working on.

"Yeah I'm fine, the cuts aren't that deep," I assured him, "I'm just getting real tired of being thrown into glass cabinets around here. At least this one wasn't you, huh?" My joking smile faltered when I saw Stiles flinch. I awkwardly cleared my throat, "Too soon."

"I don't think he's just younger in body," Deaton transitioned, and I breathed a sigh of relief, "I think he's also younger in mind."

"He didn't recognized any of us," Lydia said quietly, "And he looked like he was scared out of his mind."

"Not to mention I don't think older Derek, as grouchy as he is, would throw me into a glass cabinet then try to attack Lydia and Deaton," I agreed, wincing as the vet taped the gauze tightly to my arm. I noticed the other one bled through slightly.

"So if you're a teenage werewolf and you're scared, where do you go?" Stiles asked, looking at Scott.

"A wolf goes back to its den, but Derek lives in a loft."

"Not when he was a teenager," Stiles argued, and Lydia's eyes widened.

"The Hale house," She stated.

"He wouldn't remember the fire," Deaton said worriedly, "It wouldn't've happened yet."

"Quick question," I mentioned, "Say we do manage to catch up to him, what exactly are we going to say? That his whole family is dead? Because I for one think that might be a terrible idea."

"She's probably right," Stiles said over to Scott, "We probably shouldn't. At least until we figure out how to get him back to normal."

"I don't think I can lie to him," Scott said.

"Okay, then I'll do it," Stiles offered, not hesitating.

"Well I don't think any of us can. Remember he can hear a heartbeat rising. We tell him the truth," Scott said with finality.

"If he gets to the house first, we might not have to," I muttered.

"Yeah well, we gotta get there before he does," Stiles agreed, gently helping me off the counter.

"Okay but not before we drop Lydia and I off," I said, and Stiles stopped.

"What, why?"

"Well, you might be fresh-faced and ready to party but I've literally been in these clothes for two days, I'm changing clothes."

"June, there's not a lot of time-"

"Look I get that Derek is a super fast werewolf, but he left barely twenty minutes ago. It's not exactly a short walk to the Hale house, we could still get to him by car quickly. He's delirious, and that could slow him down."

"June-"

"Stiles for the love of god, let me change clothes!" I pouted, and he sighed. Eye twitching slightly, he put a hand on my back and ushered me out of the animal clinic. Over my shoulder, I waved to Deaton and thanked him for helping me with my arms.

We dropped Lydia off in record time, Stiles blazing through traffic like he was playing a game of Grand Theft Auto. I was genuinely surprised that nobody pulled us over. He was quick to get to my house, and I stood outside staring at it uncomfortably while Scott pulled over next to us.

Scott shifted uncomfortably, "Are your-"

"I don't know," I said quietly, "If you don't want to come in that's fine."

"We don't mind," Stiles said quickly, and I smiled gratefully at him.

"First, could you just grab one of the duffel bags from your guest room that I've been using?" I asked Stiles, "Just so I can pile some more clothes in."

Stiles nodded, and got out of the jeep with Scott, who in turn let me out of the backseat. I hopped out and pulled out my key to the house. I looked to the two boys and told them not to worry about knocking before I trudged inside.

Going inside, I looked around at the familiar surroundings, and couldn't help but miss it. I missed not being worried to step foot there without feeling like my past was haunting me. I breathed a sigh of relief when I opened the door to the basement to hear no sounds, signaling that the house was in fact empty. I quickly moved to the kitchen and opened up the fridge, delighted to see there were several healing potions stocked. Uncapping one, I downed it, puckering my face at the lemony taste, and grabbed the rest of them, bringing them upstairs with me.

No time to shower, I simply put dry shampoo in my hair, tying it in a messy ponytail. My long hair touched the small of my back that wasn't covered by my shorts or crop top, and I smiled at how proud I was of it for growing so long. I quickly changed out of my outfit from Mexico and threw on something slightly more comfortable. As I was lacing up my white converse, I heard the front door open, and Stiles' voice call out my name.

He came in to my room with Scott in tow, and tossed me the duffel bag. I was much less careful in packing my clothes this time around, haphazardly stuffing as many clothes into the duffel as possible. I zipped it up and told Stiles I would meet him out by the jeep as I ran across the street into the Stilinski household. I didn't even look at where the duffel bag landed as I carelessly threw it into the guest room before rushing back outside to meet the boys.

We both piled into the jeep and drove off towards the preserve. I realized I had never actually been to where the Hale's used to live. I said such thoughts aloud to fill the silence.

"Yeah the county reclaimed the land after Derek bought the loft, and there wasn't really any reason to go back," Stiles explained and I nodded my head.

"Unit 4 to dispatch, we're bringing in a hostile teenager, attempted to assault a deputy," Stiles' radio said over us. We all perked up.

"Copy that Unit 4, what's your 20?"

"Beacon Hills Preserve, we caught this kid breaking and entering onto the former Hale residence," The officer replied, and in front of me Stiles and Scott shared a look.

"Looks like we found Derek," I said, and Stiles sighed before changing course to the sheriff's station.

* * *

We burst through the doors of the station and right into past the front desk. The deputy sitting there didn't even look up at us, signaling that Stiles and company coming through here was too regular of an occurrence. Stiles stumbled through the doorway, and I collided into him, sending him sprawling to the floor, and I regained my composure. Stiles hastily got up, and we all looked over to see Sheriff Stilinski and a young Derek staring at us with eyebrows raised. The sheriff turned to the two deputies and muttered something before waving the three of us into his office.

"Now I want you to be honest with me," Stilinski said, leaning against his desk, "Absolutely and completely honest: Have you been time traveling?"

"Whoa, what?" Stiles said, thrown for a loop.

"Because if time traveling is real, you know what I - I'm done! I'm out. You're gonna be driving _me_ to Eichen House."

"Dad, time travel is not real," Stiles assured him.

"Well," I said in a high pitched voice, and all three of them looked to me.

Stiles' eyes widened considerably, "Hang on, what? Time travel is - is a thing?"

"It's a long story, is what it is," I argued.

Scott shook his head, "Look, we found him like that."

"Where, swimming in the fountain of youth?" The sheriff said spastically, and for just a moment I could completely see where Stiles got it from.

"No, we found him buried in a tomb of wolfsbane in an Aztec temple in Mexico, underneath a church in the middle of a town that was destroyed by an earthquake," Stiles said, slowly realizing his mistake.

I sighed putting my head in my hands, "You are so helpless," I whispered.

"You told me you were camping!" Stiles' dad hissed.

"Yeah we were. It was - in Mexico," Stiles said, and I smacked him upside the head. Whirling around, Stiles looked surprised as I gave him a 'what the fuck' look.

The sheriff looked like he wanted to jab the finger he was pointing at Stiles down his throat when he glanced over at me, "How do you even like this kid?"

I felt my ears and neck grow hot when Stiles' eyes widened at me. Luckily, Scott intervened, "Derek's been aged backwards, he can't remember anything."

"We just need to talk to him," I said breathlessly, still very aware of Stiles looking at me.

"Well so far, he's not talking to anybody," Stilinski said, leaning back on his desk again.

Scott looked through the window to the boy sitting on the suspect bench, "He'll talk to me."

Stilinski sighed and brought Derek into the office, where Scott explained that he had to come with us to hear the explanation.

"Why would I go anywhere with you?" Derek said.

"There was an accident. Okay, you lost some memory but we can help you get it back." Stiles nodded, and I saw him glance over at a stack of envelopes sitting on his father's desk.

"How much memory?"

"A lot," I said, still looking over at Stiles, who sifted through the envelopes to see one from Eichen House. The alarming detail was the large stamp across it saying in big, red letters 'Second Notice.'

"You can trust us," My gaze turned back to Scott when he crouched down in front of Derek, no doubt flashing his blood-red eyes at him.

"You're an alpha," Derek realized, and Scott nodded. Derek wasn't satisfied, however. "Okay, who are you? And - and who're they?"

Stiles looked up, "Oh, we're the guys keeping you out of jail," he spat back monotonously.

"Just let us help you," Scott said, but Derek shook his head no.

"Okay, dude, you almost tore apart two cops back there. Not to mention you could have seriously hurt June over here after your little episode at the animal clinic," Derek looked down guiltily, "You need to listen to us, and that starts with no fangs, no claws, no Wolf-Man, you got that?"

"I'm fine as long as it's not a full moon," Derek snapped.

"You still have trouble on the full moon?" Scott asked him.

"I said I'm fine."

"Alright, is he coming with us or not?" I asked.

"You want me to trust you? Then where's my family?" He asked, and I dreaded what was going to happen next. Scott looked to be at a crossroads, weighing the pros and cons at lightning speed.

"There was a fire," He started slowly, "And they're not here anymore. They're fine, just had to move out of Beacon Hills." I looked over at Scott unsure, but he kept going, "We're gonna take you to them as soon as we figure out how to get your memories back."

Derek nodded slowly, tears in his eyes, "Okay."

The deputies set to work on the release forms for Derek while we waited by the front desk. Scott sighed, "I shouldn't've done that, I lied my ass off."

"Hey, your ass is fine," Stiles said, and I raised my eyebrows. "You saved him a ton of unnecessary pain. We figure this out in a day or two, he goes back to being old Derek, everyone's happy. Except for Derek, who's never happy."

"It's just another person that we're lying to. Just that I always feel like it's better when we tell the truth. With Lydia, my mom, your dad."

"Okay, but that's also Derek Hale in there," Stiles contested. "He may be a kid right now, but that's still Derek Hale."

Scott sighed, "Alright, take him to my house, and don't let him out of your sight."

"And where are you going?" I asked.

"I'm gonna go talk to the guy we should've gone to before," Scott told us before heading out of the station.

"Uh - yeah, I hate that guy!" I called after him, and sighed while Derek came up to us. Smiling at him, I gestured to the doors.

"Shall we?"

* * *

Stiles opened the door to the dark house, "We're just gonna wait here for Scott, we're gonna sit quietly. And we're not gonna call or talk to anyone."

"Do I talk to you?"

"No."

"Good."

"Fine," Stiles said like a child, and I rolled my eyes.

"Who's gonna talk to him," Derek pointed at the dark figure of Rafael McCall looming in the doorway.

"Ah, mmm, are you getting taller?" Stiles asked, stopping abruptly.

"What are you guys doing here?" Agent McCall asked.

"Waiting for Scott," Derek said.

"So am I. We're supposed to have dinner. I brought extra, you guys hungry?"

"No," Stiles said.

"Yes," Derek and I said in unison, as Stiles looked over at me incredulously.

I shrugged at him, "I haven't eaten since last night, I could use a little food," My stomach growled loudly as soon as I smelled the Chinese food, "Okay I could use a lot of food."

"Nah, none of us are hungry, thanks though." He smiled and I glared at him.

"Okay, well if you're not hungry, Stiles, June and your friend can still eat with us. What's your name again?"

"Miguel," Stiles said hurriedly before Derek could say his real name. "He's - uh - my cousin, Miguel." Stiles awkwardly pat him on the back. "From Mexico, so..."

" _Es usted natural de Mexico, Miguel?"_ McCall asked him in near perfect Spanish.

"Oh my god," Stiles said, thinking his plan went to shit.

" _No soy nativo, si no que pase monton de tiempo alli_." Derek states, and I hide a smile at Stiles' surprised look.

"Fantastic," McCall states, "Egg roll?"

"Hell yeah," Derek and I say at the same time. Derek goes to help McCall set the table when Stiles pulled me back by the elbow.

"What did he say, June?"

"Did you honestly not take Spanish or something?"

"I took it like freshman year, do you think I'd remember it?"

I rolled my eyes, "He went along with your stupid excuse and basically covered your ass. Can I eat now?" On cue, my stomach let out another pathetic growl, and Stiles nodded.

I was practically inhaling food as we all ate in silence. Stiles looked at me from across the table in disdain as I breezed through the food. I looked up at him, and opened my mouth that was still full of food in a taunting manner. He rolled his eyes and looked back to his food as I smiled as triumphantly as I could with food still in my mouth.

"So Miguel," McCall started, "What'd you say your last name was again?"

"It's - uh - Juarez. Cinqua. Tiago," Stiles said, before stuffing his mouth full of pork.

"That's quite the mouthful," He said looking at Stiles then back to Derek, "How do you spell that?"

Both myself and Derek looked over to Stiles, amusement in our eyes. "Phonetically," Stiles said through a mouthful.

"Mr. McCall, you're an FBI agent," Derek said, eyeing the badge that was sat on the table.

"He's low level, very low level. He doesn't even have a voice," Stiles said, panicked. He looked to me for help, and I shrugged, not entirely sure what to do but watch this disaster unfold.

"So do you investigate murders?"

"Sometimes, when it's a federal crime."

"What about fires?"

"You know I wonder where Scott is?" I asked, worried. "Like, shouldn't Scott be here by now?"

"Yeah I feel like we should call Scott," Stiles agreed, pulling out his phone.

"What kind of fires are you talking about?" McCall asked, oblivious to Stiles and me. Stiles let out a nervous, high-pitched laugh.

* * *

Derek dragged Stiles upstairs and into Scott's room. I barely had time to squeeze in myself when Derek pushed him up against the door, effectively slamming it shut.

"Okay, I didn't lie. I omitted certain truths. Vital truths, now that I'm thinking about it. June, a little help here?" Stiles said as Derek growled in his ear menacingly. I cast a shield between him and Stiles before gently lifting Derek up and placing him on Scott's bed.

"I don't want to talk to you, to either of you," Derek panted, "I want to talk to the Alpha, I'll talk to Scott."

"Okay, I'm going to go get him, my phone's downstairs. June, stay with him, please?" I nodded as Stiles hurried out the room.

"I don't care if you're a witch, if you don't leave me alone, I'll rip you to shreds," Derek told me through grit teeth.

"And that is perfectly fair, given everything you just learned," I told him, holding my hands up in front of me, "I just can't let you leave. You still don't know everything yet."

He flashed his eyes at me, "Leave me alone!"

"Okay, you stay here. Just don't move, okay? Don't move." I retreated out of the room and quickly popped my head back in, "Don't-!" I stopped when I saw him standing exactly where he was before, "I thought you moved." I ran downstairs after Stiles.

"Stiles!"

"June, I told you to stay with him!"

"I know, I know, but he really wanted to be left alone."

"He didn't hurt you again, did he? I swear to god, I'm gonna-"

"Stiles, call Scott, okay?" He nodded, then went back to his phone.

Stiles was quick to download Scott on as much as he could, and he listened on the phone for a minute while Scott did the same. His eyes widened and he went back upstairs.

"No he's in your room, and he's perfectly fine. To be honest, I'm starting to miss the old Derek. So if you actually think that Kate's coming to find him-" He stopped right outside Scott's room, and when I got to the doorway, I saw why.

Derek hopped out the window, followed by a gorgeous woman with dirty blonde hair. Her face lit up in recognition, and she smiled deviously. I could only assume that this woman was Kate Argent. Stiles put the phone back to his ear again.

"You might be right. Yeah, yeah she was here. Derek's gone off with Kate."

I sighed as soon as Stiles hung up the phone, and made my way over to Scott's bed. Sitting down, I pat the spot next to me inviting Stiles to sit there. He did, and we collectively let out another sigh.

"Well we failed miserably," I said.

"That we did," Stiles agreed.

"Is Scott gonna call us back or something? I'd really like to know the plan."

"You and me both."

We sat there for another solid thirty minutes in silence until my phone rang out. Looking at it, I noticed Lydia's face on the caller ID.

"Lydia?" I answered.

"Thank god, did Scott call you?"

"No, we've been waiting for him to, why? What's going on?"

"Nothing good. I found a gas station attendant that Kate tore to pieces."

"What? Are you okay?" I asked and Stiles perked up in interest.

"I'm fine, it was a banshee thing. But the thing is Peter said that this was a symptom of Kate not having any control."

"She doesn't have control over her powers?"

"No, and that's why she needs Derek. The age he's at right now, was an age where they knew each other, like really knew each other."

"Wait wait wait, are you saying Kate and Derek did the horizontal hula?"

"That's beside the point, June. Kate needs Derek at that age so she can get an artifact from the Hale vault."

"The Hale's have a vault?" I asked.

"Yes, she's looking for a triskelion, looking for control."

"Alright where would this vault be?"

"Peter said it's at the school, and they're already on their way."

"You're at your place right?"

"Yeah, I'm with Kira, why?"

I pat Stiles on the shoulder and stood up, making my way out of the McCall residence, "Okay, hang tight, we're going to come get you." I hung up the phone as I climbed into Stiles' jeep.

"Where are we going after we get Lydia?" Stiles asked me, starting the car.

"The school," I told him, "We're going to the school."

* * *

Kira had gone off to the back of the school as the rest of us all ran under the overpass, leaves flying in the wind. We came to a stop when we saw the campus in its entirety, and glanced around.

"You seriously need to find something better than a baseball bat," I heard Lydia say from next to me. Looking around, I saw Stiles clutch his baseball bat in offense. Before he could retort, a giant roar echoed around the otherwise empty school. It was so horrific that the hairs on the back of my neck stood up.

"Okay, we should probably split up," I told Stiles and Lydia.

"Yeah, no - never a good idea," Stiles argued with me, and I moved to stand in front of them both.

"Look, you and Lydia go find the vault. I guarantee you whatever just made that noise is currently distracting Scott. He might need my help,"

"We might need your help!" Stiles argued and I smiled.

"That's what you've got the baseball bat for," I teased. Before I ran off, I quickly kissed Stiles' cheek, a little closer to the corner of his mouth than intended. Before I could think on it, I ran up the stairs towards the danger.

Scuffling grew louder mixed with several roars and loud thuds. I glanced up and noticed a large mass cornering what looked like Scott, Kira, and Malia. I ran up the stairs and stupidly yelled out to the two creatures, who I could now confidently say were berserkers.

We were screwed.

The approached me slowly, as I stood next to the stairs. From behind them, I could see Scott, Malia, and Kira all in a heap. Eyes wide, I almost missed when the first berserker brought its fist down to strike. I quickly cast a shield, and was surprised when the force of the impact brought me down on one knee. Quickly, I telekinetically lifted the berserker up, and was again surprised by just how heavy he actually was. I couldn't throw him as far as I wanted to, but it was still far enough.

The other berserker hit the shield again, but this time I was ready. I braced myself for impact and started shuffling over to my friends. I allowed the shield to grow around them as well, protecting them while they recovered.

It wasn't as smart as I wished for it to be. The other berserker got up, and joined in on the pounding of my shield. The whole hallway was cast in a purple glow every time they hit the shield.

"Scott, if you're gonna try anything again, now would be the best time," I said in a strained voice. He didn't seem to hear me over the growls of the berserkers. They kept going, and it seemed that with every blow they delivered, they got stronger. The impact was slowly sending my feet sliding against the floor and to the railing.

My arms were shaking as I had to hold the shield up, it slowly diminished over my friends. Luckily, the berserkers didn't seem to care about my friends on the floor. Unluckily, they were still solely focused on me, and getting rid of my shield. Their hits were getting to be too much, and I felt myself cowering away from them. Unfortunately, the only out was over the railing, so my back was bent over it, still casting the shield. I felt blood start to trickle out of my nose from the sheer force it took to keep my shield upright. I cried out in pain when a saving grace sounded in my ears.

Derek Hale let out a tremendous roar at the other end of the hallway, and it was loud enough to distract the two berserkers from me. They ran over at Derek, and I collapsed to my knees in utter exhaustion. Scott crawled over to me, and together we watched Derek take on two berserkers. Between the punches, I could have sworn I saw his face shifting into something more familiar.

I couldn't think too deeply on it, for a loud screech was heard, gaining the attention of the two bone-clad monsters. Together, they ran off into the night with I can only assume Kate.

Slowly, Scott hoisted one of my trembling arms over his shoulder, and helped me get to my feet. His other hand settled on my waist as we stared at the back of Derek. It looked like his shirt magically shrunk three sizes on him, or he had just grown exceptionally larger. Derek turned around to show us he was no longer a teenager. He was almost back to his normal self. Almost, had it not been for his eyes shining a golden yellow color instead of their normal blue.

I would have remarked on it had my knees not buckled right then. Scott started struggling to hold me up as my adrenaline faded from my system. Derek was quick to walk forward and scooped me up in his arms.

"I'll get her, Scott."

"We have to find Stiles," I said quietly, body still trembling. "Stiles and-"

"Lydia?" Derek asked me, looking over the railing to see what two figures running towards us, one carrying something suspiciously like a baseball bat. Stiles, Malia, and Kira raced down the stairs, while Derek cautiously carried me down the stairs. I looped my arms around his neck.

"You know I never thought I'd say this, but thank god you're older." Derek's mouth twitched, and I figured that's the best I could do.

"Also by the way, just because you're carrying me does not mean I'm a damsel in distress."

"Nobody said you were a damsel in distress," Derek told me.

"I'm perfectly capable of walking on my own," I said, ignoring him.

"You want me to set you down?" Derek asked me and I looked up at him.

"Maybe not yet. Why did you offer to carry me? We're not exactly besties."

"I guess it's a form of apology for attacking you in the animal clinic."

"Oh," I nodded, "That's fine, don't worry. I took a healing potion, the scratches are gone."

"June!" Another voice called out, and Derek led me over to Stiles. He gently set me down and his arms were soon replaced with ones belonging to Stiles.

"Are you okay? What happened? Why is your nose bleeding?"

"I'm fine," I assured him, and he looked at me skeptically, "Really, I'm okay. They just pack a big punch is all, nearly broke through my shield."

"Can they do that?" He asked me skeptically.

"I didn't think so, but those guys pack a wallop. Did you two find Kate?"

"No but we found Peter," Lydia commented, and I looked over to her.

"And?"

"And it turns out someone planned for Kate to go into the vault," She continued.

"How?" Scott asked.

"I don't know how, but they took something."

"What did they take?" Kira asked.

"Money in the form of bearer bonds," Stiles said.

"How much?" Derek questioned, and Stiles looked to him, slightly relieved he was back to normal.

"117 million dollars."


	7. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: Murder Boards = Aphrodisiac**

"Only 117 million?" I asked, and a few faces rounded to me.

"I'm sorry, _only_ 117 million?" Stiles asked dubiously, "How much money do you have?"

"On me? Like twenty bucks," I said and Stiles' eye twitched.

"Where's Peter?" Derek asked, bringing us all back to the matter at hand.

"I think he left," Lydia stated, "We didn't really want to stick around when he got over the shock of being robbed."

"Okay, all that aside, did Kate really do all of this to steal money? It doesn't seem like her style," I mentioned, and Scott nodded at me.

"She's right. Derek, is there anyone else who knew about that money or the vault?" Derek shook his head.

"No, it was originally a secret to outsiders. Honestly, I'm still kind of wondering how she knew about it in the first place."

"Didn't she torture you in your own secret room under your old house?" Stiles pointed at him with his bat, "I mean, no offense, but if that was supposed to be secret too, then your family is terrible at keeping secrets."

Derek glared at him before turning back to Scott, "Look for now, don't worry about it. I'll deal with Peter, and I'll look for Kate. In the meantime, just go back to school, and be normal for a bit."

"Huh, normal, what a thought," I remarked, and Derek gave me a pointed look. I sighed, "Okay then, let's do normal."

* * *

"Rise and shine, got a big day!"

"You better have the ability to teleport to fucking Mars, because when I get my hands on you-"

"Please, June, you couldn't hurt a fly. Seriously, you berated me for swatting an actual fly the other day." Stiles said, opening the shades in the guest room where I was currently trying to sleep.

"It was cute, okay? Right now you are not cute, you're the pest, and I'm going to swat you."

"So you think I'm cute usually then June?" I peeked one eye open to see Stiles standing above me with a smirk on his face. I scowled deeply at him when he wiggled his eyebrows.

"Why are you waking me up at-" I glanced over at the alarm clock on the nightstand, "- six thirty in the morning, Stilinski?"

"Early morning practice, you said you'd come, remember?"

"Oh yeah now I remember," I grumbled, sitting up, "Right in between saying 'there's no such thing as racism,' and 'Donald Trump is the epitome of feminism'. Piss off, Stiles, let me sleep."

"Please just please come and watch, it'd mean a lot to Scott to have some extra support on the field."

"So now I'm doing this for Scott and not you?" I asked, and it was my turn to wiggle my eyebrows at Stiles.

"Just come on, June. I'll buy you coffee," he begged.

"No need, I'm just going to somehow have to make your life hell today," I told him, lazily sliding out of bed.

"So that means you'll come?"

"Yep, I'll be there," I yawned, listening to my joints pop as I stretched.

"Great, I'll see you there!" He enthused, and quickly kissed my cheek, taking me off guard. He ran out of the door before rushing back, "Also please don't embarrass me," I raised my eyebrows as I walked out of the room and into the bathroom.

"You do that all on your own, Stiles."

"Thank you," He stated, smiling. "Hey wait-"

"I'm getting dressed now, do not talk to me!" I said, shutting the door.

* * *

"Are you planning to go back to the farm after this, June?" I glowered at Scott as I hopped out of the jeep.

"Go on, make fun of my overalls again," I tested, stepping right up to him, "Do it. I need an excuse to obliterate someone to the Shadow Realm today, really."

"You see, the Yu-Gi-Oh! reference is exactly what I'm talking about with the whole 'don't embarrass me' bit." I rolled my eyes at Stiles.

"My best friends secretly dress up as Sailor Scouts!" I yelled at an oncoming pair of lacrosse players. I glared back over to Stiles, who was looking back at me in disbelief, "Try me again."

"Look, I'm sorry June, I'm just a little on edge," Scott explained, "Coach didn't exactly say I was team captain again." We all started making our way to the field.

"Of course you're still team captain," Stiles assured him, "You got your grades up just like Coach told you to, right?"

Scott nodded, "Yeah, but he never told me I was back on the team. He just told me to show up at tryouts today."

Stiles waved him off, "We've got bigger things to deal with anyway. Did you tell Argent yet?"

Scott set his stuff down on the player's bench, "I texted him, but he didn't get back to me."

"Wait, you told him his sister Kate came back from the dead over a text?" I asked him.

He shrugged, "I didn't have the money to call France." Stiles and I nodded.

"Yeah well you think you've got money problems? Try paying for an MRI and a visit to Eichen House." I quirked an eyebrow at Stiles.

"Another notice?" Scott asked, and I looked incredulously at Stiles, who expertly avoided my gaze.

"Yeah, this one said 'Final.' Now what the hell are we even doing here anyway? We've got like one hundred and seventeen million problems, and worrying about our status on the lacrosse team isn't one of them."

"Oh my god, my thoughts exactly! Can I please go back to bed?" I moaned, and Stiles cast a weary glance.

Meanwhile, Scott was looking over Stiles' shoulder to the other boys on the field, "It's a problem now." Stiles and I looked over to the field as well to see several players pulling impressive moves. Well, I suppose they would be impressive if I knew anything about lacrosse. Some kid was positioned at the goal, and he managed to catch every single ball thrown his way.

Stiles scratched his temple, "Who the hell is that?"

"A good lacrosse player?" I said, and he glared at me.

From the distance we could see him take off his helmet, and meet up with his friends. They said something about 'Liam' and 'freshman captain.'

"Maybe we should practice a little bit," Stiles said before he and Scott rushed onto the field.

"I'll just wait here then," I said before yelling a bit louder, "Don't fuck it up!" I smiled when I saw Stiles wave his hand frantically.

* * *

"Well that was the most boring hour and a half of my life," I said when Scott and Stiles both emerged out of the locker room. Scott parted ways with us to head over to his science class.

"Do you mean the lacrosse practice or the thousand page book on Abraham Lincoln you were reading on the bleachers?"

" _Team of Rivals_ is actually 944 pages, thank you very much. It's an engaging read you should give it a go."

"Do I need to remind you that I have ADHD? A week's worth of Adderall couldn't get me through the first chapter let alone the whole book."

"Your loss," I suggested, turning the corner. We walked up ahead and saw Malia enter the math classroom. Quickly after, we saw her walk out and head down the hallway towards us. Both Stiles and I placed one hand on her shoulder and steered her into the classroom.

"Oh no you don't," I told her, and she sighed.

"I hate math, it's pointless."

"It's school," Stiles argued, "School is important, and math is essential." I took my seat next to Lydia, who was reading ahead in the math textbook.

"To what?" Malia asked, setting her stuff down behind me.

"Knowing how much to tip at restaurants," Stiles said, and Lydia and I shared an exasperated look before turning around.

"And less important things like medicine, economics, engineering," Lydia told her before giving a tired look over to Stiles.

"Tipping," He repeated, nodding his head confidently.

"Alright, volunteers to the board: Lydia, Diego, Malia," Ms. Fleming stated while clearing the chalkboard from last period.

Malia froze in her seat, "Um - I didn't volunteer."

"You did now. To the board," She gestured for her to come up. I looked around at Malia, who gave me a helpless look, and I shrugged. She turned back to Stiles, who gave her a thumbs up, and I heard her growl at him. Stiles' smile fell, as Malia strode up to the blackboard.

"She'll be alright, she has Lydia's notes," I told Stiles and he shrugged. Before he could reply, his cell phone vibrated and he pulled it out to read. An eager expression arose on his face as he showed me the screen. Reading it, I sighed when it said 'Triple Homicide Developing.'

"You have a police scanner on your phone?"

"Don't you?" I rolled my eyes and turned around as Malia and Lydia sat back down.

Lydia leaned over to me, "You might have to start taking notes for Malia," She told me and I scrunched my eyebrows.

"I thought you were letting her borrow yours," I whispered back.

"I am, but she's not getting them."

"What makes you think she'll understand mine?"

"June, did you forget about the journalist you submitted your paper to at the San Francisco Chronicle that still emails you his notes for editing? She'll understand them."

I blushed and nodded, "Good old Christopher. I'll handle it," I replied, taking out a notebook and pencil.

"June, what are you doing?" Malia asked from behind me. I turned around and gave her a reassuring smile.

"Lydia says you don't get her notes, so I'll take some for you to go over, sound good?" She nodded. "Also, if you want, Stiles and I can help you study a bit tonight." Relief plastered itself over her features, and she nodded again.

After class, I walked with Lydia over to her locker. She agreed to get some tea with me after school, then we could head over to my house. Ginny texted me telling me my parents went down to LA to visit some old friends, so they wouldn't be back until tomorrow evening.

"Hey, do you also mind if we run a quick errand? I saw something the other day and I wanted to get it for Stiles."

"If it's not lingerie, you can count me out," Lydia said and I felt my cheeks grow warm.

"No, Christ, Lydia it's nothing like that. It's just a thank you present for letting me stay with him."

"And I'm being completely serious when I say that lingerie would be a completely acceptable thank you," She looked over to me and smiled affectionately at my flustered face.

"Look, Lydia, I might be sexually experienced, but I'm not nearly as sexually confident as you are."

"One day, June, one day. You just need to bone the poor kid and get it done with, I'm so sick of waiting for it to happen."

"You're pretty much preaching to the choir here," I said. Before Lydia could reply, a hand tugged at my elbow and pulled me away.

"Stiles, any reason why you're manhandling me?" I asked flatly, and Stiles let me go. I kept up with his hurried pace nonetheless.

"We've gotta tell Scott about the murderer," He said, looking down the hallway for the werewolf.

"Why do I always have to be with you to break that news to people?"

"Simple, I like the company. Anyways, the report said the cause of death is an axe, and the guy killed three people. He meant to kill four, but - hey, Scott!" We finally caught up to Scott and Kira. "Scott! Scott, I just got an alert on my phone about a triple homicide. Some guy was using an axe on his victims."

"An axe murderer?" Kira asked dubiously.

"Family-murdering axe murder," Stiles corrected.

"I already heard about it," Scott said, and I looked over in surprise.

"Wait, what? You did, how?"

"My mom called me, she knew we'd see it on the news."

"Perfect, let's go." Stiles pointed his thumb over his shoulder.

"Whoa, whoa. We've got econ in five minutes," Scott said, opening his locker.

"Right. Did you forget the part about the family-murdering axe murderer?" Stiles asked him.

"Did you forget that your dad's the sheriff?" Scott countered, "They want us to stay out of it."

"Are you guys kidding me? There's a family-murdering axe murderer, and we're not gonna do anything about it?"

"Maybe we should just let the adults handle it," Kira suggested.

Stiles gave both Kira and Scott and incredulous look, while they looked slightly guilty.

"So the two of you, you just wanna stay here, school, go to class." Stiles said, and Scott sighed.

"Make that three, I need to get to my locker," I said, turning around and walking away.

I heard Stiles say, "Never heard anything so irresponsible in my life," before his footsteps grew louder behind me.

"See you at tryouts?" Scott yelled, and from my peripheral I saw Stiles wave his hands in a dismissive manner.

"So, June what do you think?" Stiles asked me as I walked down the hall to my locker.

"About the murders? Well, I definitely think that it's murder," I said and Stiles gave me a blank stare. I shrugged, "I don't know, Stiles. It just seems like we already have a lot on our plate."

"What does that mean?"

"With Kate running around, why do you want to add an axe-wielding murderer to the list?"

"Because it's an axe-wielding murder in Beacon Hills, June. That means that it's not just something the police can handle."

"Say you're right then. What are you going to do about it?"

"Obviously figure out who he is."

"Oh, so you're going up against this guy yourself?"

"Well obviously, not. You're going to help me."

"Am I?"

"Yep. You can't live without me," I looked at him with an eyebrow raised. "Okay, not true. But you can't live with a guilty conscience of me dying and you not helping."

I sighed, opening my locker, "That's true."

"So you'll help me after school?"

"Nope."

"What – why?"

"Because you have lacrosse tryouts after school, dumbass."

"Oh, right," He said. He then scratched his temple and shifted on his feet, "Are you – are you coming to that?"

"While I would love to repeat this morning, I can't."

"Why not?"

I started piling books into my locker, "Two reasons, one: I just told Lydia I'd go grab tea with her after school; two: lacrosse is not my favorite sport to watch. I thought you would have guessed that by now."

"Well, what is your favorite sport? And please, for the love of all things holy don't say some rich person's sport like polo. Those don't count."

I scoffed, "Polo? What am I, the queen? No no, I love baseball."

Stiles' eyes widened, "Baseball? What's your favorite team? You're from New York, there's only one right answer."

I raised my eyebrows in disbelief, "If you're saying the Yankees are the one right answer, you're dead wrong, Stilinski."

I looked over at Stiles, and glee was shining on his face, "No way, your favorite team's the Mets? As in the New York Mets?"

I grinned at him, "All my life. It's so weird, no one in my family liked baseball. It just kind of stemmed from me. It got so obsessive that I made my parents buy several of their shares in the stock market."

I could have laughed at how Stiles' jaw was practically on the floor, "Buy – buy shares?"

"Yeah, just so I could meet them."

"Meet-! Meet them, oh my god. You actually-?" I whipped out my cell phone, pulling up one of my treasured pictures of the baseball team with me grinning like an idiot in the middle of them.

"Is that-?"

"Yep, at my family's annual Christmas party. That was a good night, Anthony Recker and I had a drink-off with my father's spiked egg nog. He won't admit it, but I totally won," I trailed off, smiling down at the memory. I put my phone away, and looked back at Stiles.

His eyes shone with awe, "Marry me, please god, marry me."

My cheeks flared as I shut my locker. Staring at the ground, I answered, "As tempting as that sounds, I need to meet Lydia. Good luck at tryouts."

* * *

"Thanks for doing that with me," I told Lydia as we exited Stiles' house and went back to Lydia's car.

"I still think lingerie would have been a better gift," She commented, and I sighed.

"Same, but for now that's just gonna have to do as a thank you. Tea?" I asked her as I buckled my seatbelt.

"Tea," she agreed, and we drove off.

"So just out of curiosity, have you been talking to Ginny as of late?" Lydia asked me.

"I mean, we've been texting. I haven't really gotten to see her, and I can't just go and visit her at her job," I told her.

"I wonder what she even does," Lydia added and I laughed slightly.

"Don't we all," I muttered. "But I was hoping to get to see her tonight, so we could have dinner. I mean it'll all be back to normal when my parents leave."

"When is that?"

"Saturday, thank the lord," I said. "They'll be out of my hair and out of our lives."

"And then we can go through your closet like I wanted to?"

"Well there's that, but there's also the whole concept of Spring Break I wanted to mention..." I trailed off, twisting a loose strand of hair.

"What about it?" Lydia asked as she turned a corner.

"I racked up enough miles with our last trip to Portland, and I was just curious if like, for your eighteenth would you maybe want to go somewhere a bit more high end?"

"Like?" Lydia glanced over at me, a smile begging to present itself on her lips.

"As much as I would love to take you to New York, ancient law dictates that I can't go back for another four years. I figured we could go somewhere a bit more upscale?"

"I swear, if you say somewhere like Paris-"

"How current is your passport again?" I smiled and Lydia squealed.

"June! You can't do that for me, that's too much," She protested, and I scoffed.

"Please, the flight's practically free. Your birthday present would be like me upgrading us to first class or the night of your actual birthday we'd stay in a fancy hotel. The rest we're doing like proper youths, and I mean hostels, cheap food, the lot."

"Did you get the tickets yet?"

"Glad to know you'd be on board," I told her, my smile growing wider. "I have them lined up, and your mom is one hundred percent on board. Honest, we were just waiting for you to say yes."

"What, like I'd say no?" Lydia disdained. "Of course I would love to go."

"Glad we've got that settled, I'll book the tickets tonight," I told her, and I looked out the window again. My eyebrows furrowed when I saw that we weren't close to a coffee shop of any sort. We were actually in a different neighborhood.

"Lyds, where are we?" I looked over to Lydia, but she had a strange look on her face. She got up and left the car. I was quick to follow her out, and together we made our way to the fence next to an eerie looking house. I noticed as we passed the front door there was crime scene tape lining the front walkway. I widened my eyes as I continued to follow Lydia.

We shut the door to the fence and walked up to the back door, Lydia still in her trance-like state. The sliding back door was miraculously unlocked, and we stepped inside together. I was hesitant to go any further, but Lydia blazed on through.

"Lydia, this is a crime scene," I spoke, and she ignored me. "Lydia!"

She jumped and whirled around to look at me, "What?"

"Lyds, this is a crime scene. We can't be here."

"A crime scene?" She asked me, and I slowly nodded my head.

"Let's go," I said, holding out my hand. She reached out to take it, when we heard another voice in the house.

"Beacon County Sheriff's Department! This is a crime scene, show yourself." I looked back to Lydia and sighed. Nodding my head, I gestured towards where the voice was coming from. Both of us walked out in front, jumping when the deputy pointed his gun at us. I recognized the cop to be Deputy Parrish, and he recognized the both of us.

Putting the gun down, he sighed, "What are you guys doing here? This is an active crime scene, you shouldn't be here."

We walked down a hallway past the dining room. "I would try to explain it," Lydia said, "but I've never gotten a satisfactory explanation myself."

"Just an unusual habit of showing up at places where people have been brutally murdered?" I shared a look with Lydia before turning around to Parrish.

"Are you saying I have a reputation?" Lydia asked him.

"An unusual one," He admitted. "Maybe you're psychic."

Lydia scoffed, "Don't tell me you believe all that?" I hid my smile by looking around the room we were standing in.

"I'd like to say I don't believe in anything," He said flirtatiously, "But I keep an open mind. But if you're looking for dead bodies, I think you're a little late."

Lydia stopped paying attention, and turned her focus to a wood-paneled wall. She stared at it with the same look she had when breaking into the house before she put her hand on it and pushed. The wall popped open and a cool vapor exited the cracks, revealing a hidden hallway.

Parrish, surprised, pulled out his gun once again along with his flashlight. He clicked it on and slowly walked inside. Lydia and I followed behind him, into the narrow hallway that was much colder than the rest of the house. I ignored how I could see my breath, and followed behind Parrish.

"Does anybody else think that this is exactly how the beginning of a horror movie starts, and that we're the next victims?" I whispered, only to be met with silence. "No one? Okay."

We made our way down to the end of the hallway, and to our left was a plastic tarp. Parrish opened it with one hand and peered inside. He slowly stepped in while Lydia and I filed in behind him. He found in his search a light switch, and flicked it on to reveal a meat locker of sorts. Bags and bags were found suspended on meat hooks, and my breathing quickened at how large they were.

"It looks like a game locker," Parrish said, reaching out to investigate the closest bag. I was silently praying that he was right, and I wouldn't be exposed to more another traumatic occurrence in this town.

Of course, when did me wishing ever get me what I wanted? The deputy opened the bag to find a dead woman with her eyes wide open. I choked down some vomit looking around at all the bags that were now confirmed to be holding dead bodies.

"Yeah, welp, that's my cue. If you need me, I'll be up on the front porch crying my eyes out." I said, hastily exiting the room. I scurried down the narrow hallway and out into the sunlight. I headed to the front door and quickly whipped out my cell phone. Dialing the number I memorized long ago, I anxiously waited for them to answer.

"June?"

"Hey, yeah. Yeah it's me."

"Is everything okay?"

"Fine, peachy keen, actually."

"Great so, why are you calling me then?" Stiles asked suspiciously.

"Oh, no reason. Just that you might actually be right about the family-murdering axe murderer being Beacon Hills weird."

"What? How so?"

"Well I think whoever the killer is killed like a bunch of cannibals or something. The house had a secret meat locker filled with dead bodies."

"Human bodies?"

"Yes, don't make me repeat it, I will vomit," I told him sternly, already weak in the knees from it. "Look, I can't really talk right now, as I'm sure Deputy Parrish has called for backup. I'll explain as much as I can when I get back to your house, okay?"

"That's probably a good idea, I'm headed to the hospital anyway."

"The hospital, why? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, this freshman hurt his ankle during tryouts and we're taking it to get it x-rayed."

"Okay good. I'll meet you as soon as I can," A lightbulb went off as I remembered something. "Stiles!"

"What?"

"If you beat me to your house, don't go in your room."

There was a pause. "Why can't I go into my room?"

"There's something there that I need to explain to you."

"Is this something I should be worried about?"

"No."

"Will it get in the way of us helping Malia study?"

"Nope, just please, don't go into your room okay? Promise?"

He sighed, "Yeah, I guess."

"Say it."

"Oh come on, June-"

"Say you'll promise, Stilinski."

"I promise I won't go into my room when I get to my house until you get there," He said in a way that sounded like it was through his teeth. I looked away from my phone when I saw Lydia and the deputy come out of the house.

"Great, see you there," I said before hanging up.

* * *

I thanked Lydia as we pulled up to Stiles' driveway. Seeing Stiles leaning up against his jeep, I quickly hopped out of the car and walked up to him.

"You didn't wait too long, right?" I asked him. He shook his head.

"No, I only got here like ten minutes ago. What happened with Lydia?" He asked me.

I sighed, "I'll explain in a minute, did you go inside?"

"No, I didn't. Why couldn't I go inside again?"

I grinned and grabbed his hand, "You'll see in a minute," I told him as I dragged him inside.

"Okay well whatever you have to show me needs to be fast, we told Malia we'd help her study, remember?"

I pulled him up the stairs, "I know that. It'll only take a minute."

I opened the door to his bedroom and I heard Stiles grumbling behind me, "Well what's the–" He stopped talking when he saw what was in his room.

"June," He turned to me, "Why is there a whiteboard in my room?"

"Well it'd have to be white to be a whiteboard," I said looking at the clear dry erase board proudly.

"Okay, why is it in my room though?"

"It's yours!"

"Okay, but why?" I rolled my eyes at his obliviousness.

"Well I thought it would be easier to use as a murder board than your corkboard. This way, you can write things down easier and it'll help keep you more organized."

I smiled when his eyes widened in realization, "A murder board?"

"Yes, dumbass. It's an actual murder board, complete with markers and all. I didn't want to move anything over yet because I know that gives you a kind of satisfaction and all - "

"Why?" He said quietly, and I wasn't sure I heard him.

"Hmm?"

"Why," He asked more clearly, "Why did you get this for me?"

I scratched my wrist, unsure if he liked it, "Well, I uh – I wanted to thank you. You know, I – I wanted to repay you somehow for letting me stay with you. I'm not – I'm not ready to really talk to my parents without potentially blowing something up and – "

"June, you didn't need to do this for me."

"I know," I said, nodding, "But I wanted to, as some way to just say thank you."

He looked from me back to the board, staring at it intently.

I looked at him carefully, "Did you not want it? I mean – do you not like it?"

"No, it's not that," Stiles answered, "I'm just at a loss for words I think."

"That's a first," I said nervously, "Do you like it?"

"I just – I do. I really like it," He started and I breathed out in relief, "I mean – I just don't get how you know. You always know. It's perfect."

"If you like it now," I said, going over to his desk, "You're going to love it in a second."

"What do you mean?"

I grabbed the rolls of tape off his desk and walked back over to him. "I got these to go with it."

"Different colored tape?"

"Well I figured that it'd be easier than your strings. Green tape for 'solved,' yellow tape for 'in progress,' and – "

"Red tape for 'unsolved,'" Stiles whispered, a trace of a smile on his face.

"Yeah and blue tape because it's pretty," I told him. He looked up and locked eyes with me. We held eye contact for a second before I looked back to the board, blushing slightly.

"Right, I thought about getting you the same color-coded markers, but I figured black and white might stand out better. I mean I totally could go back to the store and grab them. Although, I'm not entirely sure how well the yellow marker would fare - "

Talking about yellow dry erase markers did not seem to interest Stiles. What did peak his interest was interrupting my rambling by means of a kiss. Caught entirely by surprise, I dropped the rolls of tape. Stiles completely ignored the clatter they made as he continued kissing me.

It took a solid five seconds before I realized what was happening. When I finally came to my senses, my eyes fluttered shut and I started kissing back. Like the first time we kissed, I felt that something. That something that made me want more. I was elated that it was still there, and that the boy I loved was kissing me. I mean really kissing me.

His hands that were placed on either side of my face slowly moved to wrap around my waist. I positioned my arms to wrap around his neck, and pulled him even closer to me. I opened my mouth, and deepened the kiss. He tasted like the mint mojito gum I always see him carry around mixed with the same raspberries as before, and I honestly couldn't think of a better taste. My senses were overwhelmed and my body seemed to heat up dramatically.

Before anything else could happen, a knock sounded downstairs. Opening my eyes, I sprang apart from Stiles. Eyes wide with shock, I stared at him. He seemed just as caught off guard, like he couldn't believe what just happened either. I opened my mouth to ask him what the hell just happened when another knock sounded on the front door.

Opening and closing my mouth, I stared at him a second more. Panting slightly, I said, "That'll be Malia," and rushed out of the room. Heading downstairs, I ran a hand through my hair and took a deep breath. It took all I had not to smile giddily as I opened the door to let Malia in.

* * *

"Alright, that's it," I heard Malia say from above me, before slamming her textbook shut. I looked up from my spot at the foot of Stiles' bed to see her gathering all her notes together.

"Hey, we're not finished yet," Stiles protested, and Malia sprung off the bed. She quickly rounded the bed and walked over to the window, opening it wide. She dumped all her notes and books out the window before retreating from the window.

"Yes we are," She said triumphantly, and I smiled at her. Magically, I brought her books back in through the window, and they came floating through the room. I smiled wider at Malia's scowling face when they floated her way.

"We promised we'd help you study, Malia, so let's study," I told her, and her scowl deepened. She begrudgingly opened up her books and looked at them.

"So, what's the secret then? Why is math impossible for me and easy for you guys?"

"Well, June's an academic prodigy, and she is leagues above everyone else, so she's got that going for her," Stiles answered and I nodded. "But the rest of us use Lydia's notes."

"Then somebody needs to give me notes on Lydia's notes-" Malia pulled out Lydia's composition notebook, "- because I don't understand any of this."

"I'm working on it," I said, snatching up the notebook. "Let's see here..." I flickered through the pages to get to the notes on chapter nine when my eyebrows furrowed, "Hang on, you said Lydia wrote these?" I asked Malia, flicking through the pages.

"Yeah, what are they?"

My eyes grew wide and I turned to Stiles, who's attention peaked when he saw my face. I swallowed, "They're not math." I quickly handed over the book to Stiles for him to look through. He flicked through the pages and stared at the filled lines.

"What the hell is this?" He asked.

"I think it's code, although I'd need to take a closer look to see what kind," I explained. Malia's phone buzzed at the same time we heard a car honk outside.

"That's my dad," Malia groaned, "And I got absolutely nothing accomplished."

"Look," I told her, filing through my backpack and pulling out a folder, "This is tonight's and tomorrow night's homework. For now, just copy off of that, it should give me enough time to get you some better notes. I'll need to keep Lydia's notebook, but I promise I'll get you some easier notes, okay?"

"You're a lifesaver, June," Malia said as all three of us walked downstairs.

"Don't forget to come back over tomorrow morning to talk about the full moon with us!" Malia shrugged me off and I shut the door behind her. I looked over to Stiles worriedly.

"It's a code?"

"Yeah, but to be sure of anything, I'm going to need my computer-"

I could barely turn on my heel before someone knocked on Stiles' front door. Scrunching my eyebrows, I looked over to Stiles. He shrugged and jumped slightly when whoever it was knocked again, this time more urgently.

"Did Malia forget something?"

Stiles opened the door, "I don't think so - Scott?"

I rounded the door so I could see Scott for myself, "What are you doing here?"

He panted nervously and swallowed, "Uh - I don't - I don't really know how to explain it. I think it'd be better if you guys saw it for yourselves."


	8. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: Stiles has Kinks and Remembers Things**

"See what for ourselves?"

"There was a fight at the hospital - a guy with no mouth - killed Sean Walcott - Liam was there-"

"Scott slow down, you're not making any sense," I interrupted, watching a panting Scott with growing concern.

"Dude just start from the beginning, what happened?" Stiles asked while Scott took a deep breath.

"Okay, I can't really say much without showing you guys but long story short, there was a fight at the hospital."

"And now Sean Walcott is dead, the guy whose family was murdered by the family-murdering axe murderer, that guy?" Stiles went on.

"Okay, we're seriously going to need a better name for this guy than 'Family-Murdering Axe Murderer' because it's a mouthful," I whined. Both boys gave me blank looks and I shook my head. "Fine, what else?"

"The worst part was that Liam was there," Scott sighed.

"Liam, the guy you two pummeled because of some weird testosterone-fueled logic?" I asked and Scott nodded.

"Yeah, well Sean dragged him to the rooftop and launched into this whole spiel about how wendigos need food and nearly threw Liam off the roof."

"I'm sorry, a wendigo?" Stiles questioned and Scott nodded. They both turned to me in inquisition.

"Do you know what that is?"

I shrugged, "Well they're cannibalistic shape-shifters. Which makes perfect sense considering the meat locker filled with dead people. I had no idea there were any in this region."

"Okay but Liam saw all of this? Did you explain it to him?" Stiles questioned.

Scott blanched, "Not exactly. Which is why I need the two of you to come with me."

"Where are we going?" I asked, shrugging on a jacket, Stiles putting on his shoes.

"My house, and while we're on the way, Stiles, I need you to tell your dad everything I told you. Except for Liam, don't tell him about Liam. I also kind of need Derek to get over to the hospital, to see what he can find."

"But is there anything to find?" I asked him. "I mean it seems like you were there and saw everything. That must give you a lot of need-to-know information."

"I don't know who killed Sean Walcott. The guy had no mouth and I've never seen anything like him before," My eyes widened and I looked over to Stiles, who mirrored my expression.

Scott was already hopping back on his bike while Stiles climbed into the jeep. He looked expectantly at me, "June, are you coming?"

I nodded, turning around to go back into the house, "Yeah, I am. I'm just gonna grab Lydia's notebook and tell her about it." I ran back into the house and back up into Stiles' room fetching Lydia's notebook before running back downstairs. I hurriedly hopped into the jeep and Stiles took off in the direction of the McCall household. His phone was already glued to his ear as I brought out my own to call Lydia.

"Hello?"

"Lyds, it's me," I explained, flipping through the pages of her notebook.

"Obviously, you know there is such a thing as caller ID," She droned, and her tone was reminiscent to that which she always adopted when painting her toes.

"Great, Lydia, I'm going to need you to put down the nail polish for a second and listen."

"How did you even know I was-"

"Like I don't know you at all, Lydia. That's not the point. The point is, I know why Malia didn't understand your notes."

"Do enlighten me, everyone else gets them, I don't know why she wouldn't."

"Lydia if I wasn't as smart as you, I would have no idea what you wrote either. But your notebook doesn't have math notes in it."

"What would it have in it then?"

"Looking closely at it, I'd say you wrote out a code of some kind. I'm just not entirely sure which one it was."

"A code?" Lydia sounded disbelieving.

"Yes," I explained, "A code. Look, I don't have time to go over it myself or to bring you back your notes, so I'm sending you some pictures of it." I put the phone on speaker as I went started fiddling with it to get to its camera.

"Okay why do you need me to look at a code I supposedly wrote?" Lydia asked doubtfully.

"Because if you didn't know you wrote this willingly, then what if it's you being a banshee telling you something important? Something pertaining to death?"

"Maybe you should send me the notes," I heard her say and I smiled. I took several pictures and sent them to her before taking the phone off of speaker.

"Did you get them?" I asked her.

"Hang on - yep. I have them."

"And?"

"Well I'm not going to know what it is right away, now am I?" I rolled my eyes.

"Lydia-"

"But looking at it from a glance," She pressed on, "I would say you're right. It is a code."

Stiles pulled up to Scott's house at the same time Scott did.

"Okay look, Lydia. Keep me posted on what it is, text me as soon as you know."

"Why couldn't you do this again?"

I huffed, "Scott needs my help right now with something I'm sure you'll hear about tomorrow. Talk to you then," I told her and hung up my phone. Scott was bouncing on his feet ushering us inside. I put my phone away and tuned in to Scott's conversation with Stiles.

"Like I said, I told my dad everything I could," Stiles explained as Scott led us to the stairs.

"But you didn't tell him about Liam?" Scott asked again.

"You barely told us about Liam," Stiles argued.

"What did you do with him, anyway?" I asked.

"He's upstairs," Scott told us.

"Doing what?"

"Um - lying down."

Upstairs lying down apparently meant lying down in Scott's bathroom, in his bathtub, with duct tape around his entire body. When Scott ripped back the curtain to reveal the whimpering freshman, I couldn't help but shut my eyes in resignation. It did not escape my attention how one of Liam's arms was dripping with blood from a nasty gash very similar to a bite.

Scott closed the curtain and we all slowly walked out of the bathroom. The three of us slowly sat down on Scott's bed in sync, and stared at the wall. Stiles was the first to say anything.

"So you bit him," He stated, and I saw Scott nod from my peripheral.

"Yeah."

"And you kidnapped him," He said again.

"Yeah."

"And then you brought him here," I said, wondering why in the hell he would do that.

"I panicked," He defended.

"Yup," Stiles agreed. "This isn't gonna end with us burying the pieces of his body out in the desert is it?"

We all turned our heads towards the bathroom when Liam's cries of protest at that last statement reached our ears.

Stiles nodded in acceptance, "As a reminder, this is why I always come up with the plans. Your plans suck."

"I know," Scott said quietly. "Which is why I came to your house. So what do we do?"

Another beat of silence before Stiles sighed through his nose and stood up. He scrambled downstairs before coming back up with a chair.

"We just have to tell him the truth," He said. "Scott, go grab Liam." Scott did as asked and carried the boy over his shoulder into his bedroom. He set Liam down in the chair so he was facing the three of us. He glared up at us as he breathed heavily and I sighed.

"Okay, Liam. We're gonna take the tape off of your mouth. If you scream, it goes right back on. If you talk quietly, it stays off. Got it?" I asked him, and he looked up at me. I nodded reassuringly and he nodded back. Stiles ripped the tape off harshly and Liam hissed. But he looked up at us silently, waiting for us to explain.

"Okay Liam, you've seen a lot of confusing things tonight. And more confusing things are going to happen because of the confusing things that happened tonight. Do you understand?"

"Not really," Liam said.

"Good, that's good," Stiles said sarcastically.

"I don't understand either," Scott told me, leaning in to whisper in my ear.

"I don't think anyone did," I whispered back, "Just go with it."

"Maybe you should tell him," Stiles said, not taking his eyes off of Liam, who was glancing between the three of us.

"Tell me what?" He asked impatiently.

"Liam," Scott started, "What happened to you, what I did to you, which I had to do in order to save you, it's going to change you."

"Unless it kills you," My eyes widened as my head whipped over to where Stiles was. I hit his arm harshly and he looked over at me incredulously.

"Shouldn't've said that, dumbass!" I told him.

"What?" Liam whispered, his breathing picking up.

"Uh..."

"Uh-oh. Uh-oh, is he crying?" Stiles asked.

"Well maybe if some people learned to shut their mouths when it's appropriate," I suggested and Stiles glared back at me.

Scott crouched down before our bickering could ensue, and looked at Liam. "Liam, it's going to be okay. You're going to be alright. You're not gonna die," He tried over Liam's crying.

"Probably not," Stiles crouched down next to him and I flicked his ear hard.

"Seriously, stop it. Does everything I say go in one ear and out the other or something?" I asked him.

"Okay possibly not," Stiles corrected.

"Jesus Christ," I exclaimed.

"Look would you just - just help me untie him?" Scott asked, and we all set to work on untying Liam from his bonds. As soon as Liam was free, he kept his gaze down on the floor.

"Liam, are you okay?" Scott asked resigned. Liam stood up slowly, still looking at the floor.

"We're sorry about that," Stiles tried. "We're really sorry."

Sorry didn't seem to do much good for Liam as he quickly turned and grasped the chair. He spun back around and broke the chair over Scott's head, sending Scott to the ground. In surprise, I backed up a bit as Stiles stepped in front of me.

"Liam, what the hell is your-?" He was cut off when Liam threw a heavy punch onto Stiles' jaw, sending Stiles backwards into the dresser. I quickly went over to him as Liam hopped over me and rush out of Scott's room. Quick to make sure Stiles wasn't too hurt, I hurried out the doorway to see Liam examining his supposedly injured ankle.

"Liam, listen to me!" I tried, but when he turned around, I only saw anger in his eyes. He rushed at me and pushed me backwards. He must've used an unnatural amount of force, as I was sent flying into the back wall of the hallway. He effectively knocked the air out of me, and I was forced to regain breathing in lieu of trying to stop Liam.

In front of me, I heard Stiles yell out, "GET HIM!" Followed by many loud yells and multiple crashes as I saw all three of the boys tumble down the stairs. Eyes widened in shock, I stumbled down the hallway to the top of the stairs, where the sounds of scuffling were heard. When I rounded the corner, I saw two boys wrestling with each other's legs, and the front door wide open.

Stiles was incessantly yelling that he got Liam before he opened his eyes and saw he was in fact holding Scott's leg. Stiles' own foot was pressed up against Scott's face. Stiles quickly let go of Scott, and Scott frustratedly brushed Stiles off of him. The two of them stared out the open door as I hobbled down the stairs. Scott and Stiles looked up at me when I reached the main floor.

I glared at Stiles, "Your plan sucked too," I wheezed, clutching my aching back.

* * *

"Morning June!" Malia chirped happily as she went down the hallway into Stiles' room. I nodded in delirium as I stood in my pajamas in the doorway of the guest room about to make my way to the bathroom. I figured Stiles could handle the whole talk of the full moon and I went into the bathroom, getting ready for the school day. In between brushing my teeth and washing my face, I heard little snippets of their conversation about Liam and Lydia's lake house.

I was shrugging on my blouse when I saw the sheriff walk by with a travel mug of coffee in his hand. He nodded at me and told me to have a good day before making his way down to his son's room. I quirked an eyebrow when I heard him say, "I don't even want to know."

I heard the sheriff's footsteps draw nearer when I heard Stiles yell out, "There's nothing to know, 'cause I just..."

The sheriff walked by again and stopped in my doorway before looking at me again, disbelief on his face. "How you like my son is beyond me, really." I smiled largely as he walked away, and I padded over to Stiles' room. Inside was Stiles sitting on the bed next to Malia, as he held her arm which was chained up. A creak in the floorboards signaled my presence, and they both looked up at me again.

Stiles' cheeks flared red, and Malia just waved at me again. Looking from Stiles to the chains on Malia and inferring what Stiles's father walked in on, my smile grew bigger.

"June, I-"

I put my hands up in the air, "Hey, we all have our kinks, I'm not judging. Just wondering how far I can take this joke. I'd say to the grave, probably."

"June, it's not-"

"I don't get it," Malia said, taking off the cuff from the chain.

"Please don't ever grow up," I told her, tucking in my undershirt to my shorts. I looked back over to Stiles, "And why aren't you ready to go yet? We're supposed to meet Scott early so we can intercept Liam."

"Intercept, what are we, spies?"

"No, I'm June, and you're Stiles, remember? The boy with the bondage kinks?" I laughed when his cheeks flared up again.

"I like that blouse, June," Malia said, ignoring what I just said. I looked down at my outfit.

"Hey thanks, I'll let you borrow it sometime. Chop chop, ladies and gents, we have a school to get to, a freshman to save from his own newly developed werewolf powers, and a Stiles to thoroughly embarrass for his supposed sexual endeavors," I said as I walked back over to my room and threw on my converse.

* * *

"Scott, if you keep staring like that you'll develop a cataract or something-"

"It's Liam," Scott interrupted me, and Stiles and I turned our heads to where Scott was looking. There in fact was Liam, wearing a bright white bandage on his arm and talking to another freshman boy by the school buses. Well, he was a little too twitchy to just be talking. He jumped at several small sounds, and his head was darting around everywhere like a paranoid recluse on a public outing.

"Well that was easy," I remarked, looking back over at Scott.

"No, it wasn't. We still need to explain to him what happened," Scott argued.

"Is he even going to want to talk to us? I mean you did technically kidnap him," Stiles asked.

"He'll have to talk to us, we can't just leave him to fend for himself."

"Well he should've thought of that before he threw me into a wall," I pouted and Scott rolled his eyes.

"Look, will the two of you just go inside, we'll try and corner him in the music hallway," Scott ordered, and Stiles grabbed my arm as a signal to leave. I trudged along behind Stiles when the overhead bell rang.

"Oh shit, he'll be making his way in already," Stiles muttered before grabbing a hold of my hand and pulling me down a hallway. I'll admit, between the running and the hand-holding with Stiles, I wasn't sure which got my heart racing faster.

We stopped abruptly at an intersection of hallways before looking down a hallway to see Liam being followed in by Scott.

"Liam, hey!" Stiles shouted before running down the hall to stop him from moving along any farther.

"We need to talk," Scott insisted and Liam shook his head.

"No you need to back the hell up, okay? All three of you."

"Can you just listen for one second. Please?" Scott asked and Liam waved his hands, inviting Scott to continue.

"Liam, we're brothers now," Scott said, and I saw Liam tense.

"Oh my god, Scott are you trying to explain what happened or are you telling him you've initiated him into a cult?" I asked and Scott glowered at me.

"What are you talking about? We just met and you bit me."

"The bite," Scott continued, much to mine and Stiles' dismay, "The bite is a gift."

"Scott, stop. Please stop," Stiles begged and went to stand next to Scott while pointing at Liam. "You, you, we are trying to help you, you little runt."

"By kidnapping me?" Liam asked.

Stiles scratched his temple, "Just to clarify Scott kidnapped you, alright? June and I aided and abetted." As he defended himself, Stiles pointed between me and him, and Liam turned to look at me.

I shook my head, "I honestly have no idea who these two are."

"Liam, I've gone through this before," Scott tried again, earning the focus of the three of us, "Something's happening to you. Something big."

Liam shook his head, "Nothing's happening to me." As if to prove a point, he tore off the white bandage to reveal smooth skin as he darted around me and walked away. "Nothing."

When he got down the hallway and out of earshot, I turned to the other two. Shrugging, I told Scott, "At least you didn't kill him."

"What do we do now?" Scott asked helplessly and Stiles shrugged.

"We need to inform the rest of your pack that there is a new player in town," Stiles said while clasping a hand on Scott's shoulder. I whipped out my phone and sent a group text to meet in between the school buses after lunch.

The morning came and went, and soon enough I was standing in a circle of my friends debating what to do with Liam tonight on the full moon.

"I'm not sharing my basement," Malia argued, and Lydia rolled her eyes.

"Actually it's my basement. And my mom noticed how you tore it up last time."

"Alright, she's still learning," I defended.

"We're gonna use the boathouse for Liam," Scott assured her. It's got support beams, we can chain him to one of them."

"But how do we get him out to the lake house if he doesn't trust us?" Kira asked.

"I say if it keeps him from murdering someone, we just chloroform the little bastard and throw him into the lake." Stiles said from next to me.

"I'm in," Malia suggested.

I shook my head indignantly, "No, Malia you're not. And Stiles, should we be worried at how often you seem to suggest violent resolutions?"

Stiles squinted his eyes in contemplation, "No I don't think so."

"We're not killing or kidnapping him," Scott insisted.

"Again," I muttered under my breath.

"Then let's be smarter," Lydia suggested, "We tell him there's a party and invite him."

"So you're gonna ask out a freshman?" Stiles asked.

"No I'm done with teenage boys," Lydia assured him, "But, if we're playing a trick on someone, let's use the trickster."

All eyes landed on Kira as she vehemently shook her head, "Me? No way, not me."

"Yes, you," I said. "You know what they call a female fox? A vixen."

"Me?" Kira asked doubtfully.

"You can do it, Kira. Be a vixen," Lydia echoed me, and we saw confidence light up in her eyes.

* * *

Night had fallen, and Lydia, Malia, Stiles, and I arrived at Lydia's lake house. All we were waiting on was Scott, Kira, and Liam to arrive. I helped Malia take the chains out of the back of the jeep when I heard Scott's motorbike pull up to us. He tugged off his helmet and put it on the bike before approaching a nerve-wracked Stiles.

"I just talked to Kira, she's on her way. She said it's all going fine."

"No it's not that. I have to tell you something. I asked around about Liam today and I know why he got kicked out of his last school," Stiles said before fishing out his phone.

"This is gonna be bad, isn't it?" Scott asked.

"He kind of got into it with one of his teachers. And - uh - the kid's got some serious anger issues."

"How serious?"

Stiles handed Scott his phone, "Well that's his teacher's car. After he took a crowbar to it."

"Alright, before anyone else blows a gasket at that revealing news, let's set up inside. We still need to help out Malia," I said, ushering everyone inside the house.

I just closed the door when we all heard the unmistakable sound of Kira's car pull up the drive. I turned around to see everyone else lined up in a row by the fireplace and I sighed. "We seriously couldn't think of a more casual formation?"

"Just come over here, June," Stiles waved me over and I huffed, marching to stand next to him. I faced the door once again and accidentally brushed shoulders with Stiles. I looked up at him as he looked down at me, and it felt like it was the first time we had made eye contact since we kissed last night. Blushing (although no one could see it in the dark), I apologized to Stiles.

Apparently Stiles and I let off a strong scent together. Malia let out a few audible sniffs and turned to face the two of us, "When did you guys kiss, then?" She asked and my eyes widened at her. Lydia and Scott whipped their heads around to face us, both in confusion and absolute glee upon hearing Malia's question.

"How even - what?" Stiles asked, confirming everyone's suspicion. Before we could be pressed further on the subject, Kira opened the front door, and we all had to turn back to the matter at hand. Liam walked in as Kira shut the door. He glared at all of us standing in the living room before turning back to Kira.

"Sorry," She shrugged and Liam faced us once again.

"What the hell is this?"

"Think of it like an intervention. You have a problem, Liam," Stiles said casually.

"And we're the only ones that can help," Scott continued and Liam crossed his arms.

"Before anybody AKA Scott McCall and Stiles Stilinski says anything that they'll regret, let's just cut to the chase," I started, clasping my hands together. "Liam, you were bit by Scott, an alpha werewolf. Scott is the alpha of his very own special pack in Beacon Hills, one that up until you, didn't actually consist of another werewolf.

It consisted of a banshee, a kitsune, or a fox spirit; a werecoyote, a witch, and a human," I pointed to each of us respectively as I listed. "Last night at the hospital, Scott had to bite you to save your life. That bite magically healed, along with your broken ankle, and this only confirms what we know: you're a werewolf too. And that about sums up everything you need to know before tonight, the full moon, where you try to kill everyone and everything you come into contact with." I turn to Stiles, "Was that a satisfactory explanation?"

Stiles nodded, "Yeah that about covers it, I think."

Liam blinked before pointing at each of us again, "Werewolf. Werecoyote. Banshee. Fox?" He seemed slightly hesitant about Kira.

"Kitsune," She corrected, "But fox works."

"What are you two?" Liam nodded at Stiles and me.

"Well for a little while I was possessed by an evil spirit. It was very evil."

"What are you now?" Liam asked.

"Better?"

"Okay then what are you supposed to be again?" Liam looked at me.

"Oh, I'm a witch." I told him and he narrowed his eyes.

"Like Hermione Granger?"

I put a hand to my chest, "First of all, I am so thankful that you didn't say Harry Potter, no one ever does. Second, only sort of. Think of covens, and spell casting without wands."

Liam scoffed, "Yeah? Prove it."

I sighed, placing my hands out in front of me before Stiles quickly shot his hands out and grabbed mine. "Yeah, no. Not really a good idea, she likes lifting people by the ankles, nasty habit actually..."

Liam rolled his eyes and looked down at the coffee table separating us from him. He gestured to the bag of chains perched on top, "Are those for me?"

"Actually, they're for Stiles," I interrupted, "He has some serious sexual fantasies-"

"They're for me," Malia said at the same time Stiles threw a hand over my mouth. From the corner of my eye I saw Malia flash her blue eyes at Liam. Liam took a step back and cautiously looked over at all of us.

"How'd you do that?"

"You'll learn," Scott told him. "But first, you need to get through the full moon."

"The moon's already out." Liam quipped, anger seeping into his tone.

"And you're starting to feel something, aren't you?"

"I feel like I'm surrounded by a bunch of psychotic nut jobs. You guys are out of your freaking minds. I don't know how you did that eye thing, and I don't care. I'm walking out the door right now! And if any of you try to stop me, I swear to god I'm gonna-" Liam couldn't finish his ballistic rant before doubling over and clutching onto his ears and yelling in pain.

"What's wrong, Liam?" Scott walked over to him.

"You don't hear that?" Liam whined, and all of our heads went to the windows when we saw headlights shine through Lydia's curtains.

"Did you tell someone about this?" Lydia asked, not taking her eyes off the window.

"My friend Mason," We heard a large amount of people start getting out of cars, hooting and hollering. "You said it was a party."

"Who did Mason invite?" Stiles asked him and Kira looked back into the room.

"Everyone."

Liam continued to grunt in pain, his claws bared and scratching the wooden floors.

"The floors," Lydia exclaimed, "Get him off the floors." She advanced forward but stopped abruptly when Liam roared at her, fangs exposed and eyes flashing.

"We need to get him to the boathouse, now." Scott with the help of Kira, lifted Liam up and dragged him outside through the backdoor. As he did so, Malia lurched forward clutching the coffee table.

"June, Stiles," She warned.

"Yeah?" Malia looked up and growled at me. I quickly gathered up the bag of chains and threw Malia's arm over my shoulder.

"Basement, now," I instructed Stiles as he moved to the other side of me. Together, we moved over to the basement door.

"What am I supposed to do with the hordes gathering outside the door?" Lydia asked and we paused.

"Lydia, who throws the best parties in Beacon Hills?" Stiles asked rhetorically.

"What? Me, obviously," Lydia squeaked.

"Okay then, throw a party," Stiles said and Lydia's eyes turned to slits.

I sighed, "Look, Lyds, when Malia's under control I'll come upstairs and help you, okay? I know how to keep freshman in check." Lydia scoffed and waved us off. I took that as our cue to drag a panting Malia down to the basement. We moved her to the usual corner and as I set her down, Stiles set to work on the chains. He put the cuffs on Malia as she stared at her lap and attempted to control her breathing.

"Is that too tight?" Stiles asked, and she looked up. She was wolfed out as she panted still.

"Tighter." He did as she asked and tightened the chains until it wasn't possible to be any tighter. With that, I looked for the usual two buckets that were down in the basement as Stiles stood back to look at Malia. She nodded in understanding, "You can leave if you want."

"Worst part's not over, I'm not going anywhere, Malia," I assured her.

"Yeah and I'm not going anywhere," Stiles agreed, sitting on one of the two buckets. "And to be honest, I'm probably safer down here than in a party with fifty freshmen and a very pissed off Lydia." I smiled at that comment, but it was quick to vanish as I looked back over at Malia. The music was getting louder upstairs, and it seemed to make it harder for her to concentrate on control. Looking at her took me back to the time when Araya stated that she loved this kind of music for its savage energy. How right she was about that.

We sat there for several minutes until Malia simply couldn't take it. She began lunging at us, snarling and struggling against the chains that held her back. I sighed, hating to watch her like this.

"Stiles, June, please go."

"It's okay, I hate parties. It's a social anxiety thing. You ever had a panic attack?" He asked loudly as Malia continued to fight. I was amazed at how calm he was and how laser-focused he was in trying to get her to gain control.

"I'm having one now," She yelled before lunging at us again.

"Just breathe," I told her quietly, "Stiles and I? We're not gonna leave you."

"But what if I hurt you?"

"You won't. You're not going to."

"Ugh, but I want to," She cried out. "I look at your faces and I want to slash them. I want to tear at them. I want to feel your bones crack between my hands."

"Surprisingly enough, you're not the first person to ever say something like that," Stiles comforted, but to no avail, as Malia lurched again. "We're not leaving you. And I'm not gonna let you hurt anyone."

Malia lifted one of her arms to show us the torn leather cuff, nearing its demise, "You're not gonna have a choice." I looked over to Stiles nervously, and he put a reassuring hand on my back. She kept tugging and tugging until she finally got her way. Malia successfully broke free from one of the cuffs and lunged forward. Stiles pulled me by the waist and we stopped a safe distance away from the growling werecoyote. She kept tugging at the other restraint and clawing thin air in attempt to get to us.

"Should I-?" I started and Stiles shook his head.

"No, no she'd never learn control if magic stopped her every time," Stiles disagreed and I sighed.

"Malia," He tried, "I know you can hear me. Just listen to my voice."

"Listen to mine," Malia pleaded as she tugged on the chains, "Run."

"We're not running, Malia, don't be crazy," I told her, shaking slightly as Stiles stepped closer to her.

"I also don't think you're gonna hurt us," Stiles said loudly. "And I think that maybe you're so afraid of hurting us because of what you did to your family." Malia stopped trying to pull the chains out of the wall and looked at Stiles.

"I know what that's like, Malia," He continued. "I remember everything I did. And the worst part is I remember liking it."

I froze.

"Because I felt powerful. I felt fearless. And most of all in control. But when I came through it, I learned something else." As he said all of this, he got closer to Malia than comfortable. "Control is overrated."

He stared at Malia a minute more before what I'm assuming was his psychotic break. After that statement he took the key out of his pocket and unlocked the chains, letting them clatter to the floor. Malia wasted no time in trying to wrestle Stiles, but just as I was prepared to hold her back with my magic, Stiles gained the upper hand. He held Malia at arm's length as she panted heavily.

She looked back up again and this time, her human face was all that showed. Her claws and fangs were gone, and her eyes were back to their normal brown color. Malia looked at Stiles and looked over at me before collapsing into Stiles' arms in sobs. I was quick to join the two in a hug and coaxed Malia, stating over and over that she did it. She controlled it.

At that point, however, I was only half there. My mind was racing a mile a minute at Stiles and what he admitted to Malia. He remembered everything while being possessed, and he remembered liking it. Honestly, I could see where he came from in liking all that power. Stiles being human meant he was more easily tempted by things that weren't always good. What bothered me more was the conviction he carried when he said he remembered every single thing he did.

That must've meant he remembered when he was separated from Void Stiles, right? He remembered being paralyzed by kanima venom and sitting on the McCall couch while we figured out a way to save him? He had to have remembered Peter coming over, and suggesting we go into his head, suggesting I go into his head.

 _"Somebody needs to go in with you." Everyone, including Stiles, looked to me._

 _"Me?"_

 _"Well, you love him, don't you?" Peter asked me in a patronizing way. Glee shone across the nogitsune's eyes and it made me horribly uncomfortable._

And Stiles remembered everything?

All I could think of as I kept hugging Malia was that Stiles remembered Peter relaying my feelings of Stiles to everyone, including Stiles, while he was possessed, and never once did he mention it to me.


	9. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7: Marvel has a Better Deadpool**

Stiles and I hopped out of his jeep and headed into his house. It was quiet between the two of us the whole way home, but I think Stiles was just tired after the events of tonight. I was far from tired, my mind was currently whirring with thoughts about what he told Malia. I was on autopilot as I went through my nightly routine of washing my face, brushing my teeth, and brushing my hair.

I had pulled on my Stanford sweatshirt and had one leg in my pajama shorts when I figured I'd just buck up and go talk to him about it. I finished putting on my shorts when I treaded outside of the guest room and down the hall to Stiles' room. His door was open and I stopped in the doorway. I smiled to myself as I saw him biting down on a toothbrush as he glanced down at his phone. He was clad in sweatpants, and I bit my lip when I realized that he wasn't wearing a shirt.

I cleared my throat and Stiles looked up in surprise. Spittle from his toothbrush dripped down onto his phone, and I smiled affectionately. He quickly realized that he was in a compromising situation, and held up a finger as a _one-minute_ kind of gesture. He went into his en-suite bathroom, and I heard water run, as well as several clatters. He was back in his room in no time, and pulled on the tee shirt that was sitting on his bed.

"Sorry," I began, "I totally could have knocked or something."

"Don't worry about it, it's fine. Uh – do you want to come in?" I nodded at him, and walked into his bedroom. I sat down on the edge of his bed. He slowly sat down beside me and I stared down at my hands. I started fiddling with my thumbs, and looked around his room. I started looking around anywhere but him.

"I - um – I guess that murder board was a good idea, huh?" I said quietly. I saw Stiles turn his head and look at the board. The same board that he kissed me for getting him. I glanced back down at my hands, and started bouncing my feet as well as fiddled with my hands. I stilled when I saw Stiles' hands cover my own.

"What's going on June?"

I stood up quickly and started pacing in front of him, "I don't – I don't really know. Just what you were saying to Malia tonight got me thinking."

"Okay - um – that's never really a good sign, is it?" I gave him a pointed look. "Sorry, not the time for jokes. What were you thinking about?"

"When you were talking about the nogitsune."

"About how I liked having that power?" I stopped pacing and looked over to him. His gaze was cast down this time. He stared at the floor in a manner that reflected the obvious shame he felt with that confession.

"No," I told him, and he looked up at me, "Funnily enough, you being possessed by a trickster spirit and liking the power you felt is not what confuses me."

"Then what does?"

"Right before you were saying all that, you told Malia you remembered it all. You remembered being possessed. And also right after we separated you from the nogitsune, you said you remembered everything."

"Yeah, I do."

"So you remember right before we split the two of you then? When Peter came over?" I said hesitantly.

Stiles, as clueless as ever, nodded.

I shut my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose, "So then you remember Peter basically telling everyone how I was in love with you?"

I peeked an eye open, and I saw Stiles' rigid posture. His face was flooded with remembrance, and overall he looked like a deer in the headlights.

"Stiles," I said his name again, and he broke out of his trance.

He scratched his temple, "Uh – y-yes, I remember that."

I laughed in disbelief and hurt, "Alright. Goodnight, Stiles."

I made to leave the room, but Stiles was already off the bed and grabbing my arm back. "June- "

"I don't get it!" I all but yelled in his face. "Did you revel in it? Or were you trying to save me from the embarrassment of you not reciprocating my feelings? Was that not a big enough deal for you to mention it again? I mean, why didn't you – "

I was cut off by hands on the back of my neck and lips covering my own. I stumbled back into the doorway of Stiles' bedroom as my lips quickly molded to his. Spearmint toothpaste was still fresh on his lips as I ran my tongue along them. Stiles opened his mouth and he kissed me deeper. I slid my arms under his and tangled my fingers in his hair. His hands moved down and settled themselves under my sweatshirt and on my waist.

Before anything else could happen, Stiles pulled away. He was still close enough to me that I could feel his breath against my lips.

"I'm sorry, June."

"Why didn't you say anything, Stiles?" I asked quietly, hands stroking the back of his neck. He parted from me entirely, and backed off a bit.

"I don't know, really. I just – to be totally honest, it was totally selfish. I wanted you to tell me yourself."

My eyes widened, "You wanted me to tell you?"

"Well, yeah. I also didn't know if it was something that I could believe, because Peter was the one to say it, and not you. Honestly, there were just a lot of reasons, and self-doubt had a lot to do with it."

"Self-doubt?"

"Well yeah. To be frank, I'm not really used to the girl I have feelings for reciprocating said feelings."

"You have feelings for me?" I asked him, hopeful.

He froze, realizing what he just said, "Well – um – yes. Yeah, I have for a while."

"How long is a while?" I pressed.

"Since we first kissed."

My jaw dropped to the floor, "When you had a panic attack? When Jennifer took your dad and prepared to ritually sacrifice him?"

"Thank you for reminding me – OW!" He exclaimed as I punched his arm. "June, what the – "

"That was in October! Literally months ago, and you didn't want to talk to me about this?"

He looked disbelieving, and a little frightened, "Things came up, if you didn't notice!"

"Were you ever going to talk to me about this?"

"Yes!"

"When?"

"The same day your parents came into town." I froze.

"Oh."

"Yeah. I was –" He sighed, "I was going to tell you under better circumstances."

"You should know that our lives won't ever have better circumstances," I said in a calmed voice. I looked over at Stiles, and I smiled at him.

"Yeah I guess not."

"So go ahead," I told him.

He locked eyes with me, "Go – go ahead? What do you mean?"

"Tell me what you've wanted to tell me since I kissed you, you dummy," I teased, grinning now.

"Oh – um – wow you – you sure know how to put a guy on the spot – "

I rolled my eyes, "Do you want me to start?"

He nodded fervently, "Yeah, I do. Please."

"Fine."

"Fine."

"Okay, here we go," I said, rubbing my hands together.

"Here we go." I looked back up at him, and his eyes were eager, a smile about to break out on his face.

I put my hands on my hips, "Well I'm not going to tell you if you're just going to laugh at me –" Once again, I was shut up by Stiles putting his lips on mine. A firm kiss, with no movement. He pulled away and backed up the foot of his bed, and that was all the courage I needed.

"I love you, Stiles Stilinski. I love you, and I have for a while now, but I guess you knew that."

He grinned at me, "Knew it, but didn't really believe it."

I waited in silence. When he just continued to stare at me and not say anything, I prompted him. "Well?"

"Well? Well, what?"

"Don't bullshit me. Say it, Stilinski."

"So demanding, Jesus," I glared pointedly at him. "Alright, alright! June Child, I love you. I love you, and I want you to be with me, like – labels and all. Will you be with me?"

"I am with you," I teased.

Stiles rolled his eyes and huffed, "Will you be my girlfriend?"

I smiled, and nodded, "Yes. Yes, I will be your girlfriend."

He breathed out a sigh of relief, "Oh thank god."

I laughed, "Did you think I was gonna say no?"

"Self-doubt, remember?"

"You're ridiculous," I told him, walking closer to him again.

Stiles smirked, "Yeah, but you love me."

I nodded, "That I do. I love you." I then reached up on my tippy toes and kissed him. The force of our collision buckled Stiles' knees against his bed, and he sat down. I pushed him down onto his bed, and climbed on top of him, smiling as I straddled him. I looked down at him, then kissed him again. It was electrifying, how we moved together. I loved how he tangled his hands in my hair to further the kiss as my hands gripped at his sides.

I removed my lips from his and began to explore other things to kiss. I planted feathery kisses from the corner of his mouth all the way up along his jaw. The closer I got to his earlobe, the more open mouthed my kisses grew. I could hear Stiles' breathing quicken, and I gently bit down on his earlobe. His breathing hitched all together, and before he could even process what I had done, I started kissing down his neck.

As I did so, I slid my hands to the hem of his tee shirt and tugged. Getting the memo, Stiles quickly slid the shirt right off. I removed his hands from my neck and settled them low on my hips, and I resumed kissing down his neck, following an artery. Under my lips, I could feel his pulse skyrocket, and it took all I had not to smile. I had barely made it to his collarbones when Stiles removed one of his hands that had sunk lower than my hips and slipped his fingers under my chin. He reconnected our lips, and our tongues danced once again.

We stayed there for a while just kissing until I decided to call it a night. I made sure to give him a lasting kiss before I swiftly got off him and planted my feet on solid ground. Ignoring the whines of protest coming from him, I started stretching, and as I turned around to face Stiles, I nearly laughed at the sight of him. His lips were delectably swollen, and parted in surprise. His chest was rising and falling rapidly, and his neck was smattered with red patches that my lips ached to trace all over again.

"Good night, Stilinski." I told him, and headed to the door.

"What – are you serious?" His voice was an octave higher than normal.

I turned around in the doorway, "Deadly serious. You haven't even taken me on a date yet. Sleep tight!" I paused right outside his door, and turned back around. I ran back in and planted another kiss on his lips. He barely had time to react before I pulled away. Hovering over his face, I looked in his amber-colored eyes and whispered, "I love you."

Walking out, I headed back to my room. I grinned like the Cheshire cat when I heard a winded "Holy shit," behind me. Closing the door to the guest room, I climbed back in bed, and fell asleep with the same dopey smile on my face. I slept better that night than I had in weeks.

* * *

"You're cooking in my kitchen," I heard the sheriff say from behind me.

"Good morning, and technically your kitchen is cooking things, not me," I chirped, gesturing to all of the kitchen utensils floating about as they helped me cook up the large meal, "There's coffee already in the pot."

I heard shuffling behind me, "I didn't even know we had breakfast foods in the house," Stilinski commented as he ducked under a flying tub of butter and gazed at the large amount of food scattered on the counter.

"You didn't," I said, sliding the perfectly cooked bacon onto a plate and moving over to the pancakes, "I had to run to the store to get some."

Sheriff Stilinski checked his watch, "It's seven in the morning, how long have you been up?"

"Only two hours," I said before using my magic to pour him a cup of coffee and telekinetically setting it down at the breakfast table. The sheriff shrugged and sat down.

"What is all of this for then?"

I set down his plate in front of him before throwing some more bacon into the pan, and reciting a spell to keep the spatula on top of cooking it. I sat down across from him and sighed.

"Is that bacon I smell?" Stilinski and I looked over to the kitchen doorway and saw a tired-looking Stiles shuffle in. I smiled at him, recalling last night, and by the way he looked at me, I'd say he was doing the same thing.

"Are you getting a rash or something?" I looked over at Stiles' dad with scrunched eyebrows.

"What do you mean?" Stiles asked him. The sheriff gestured to his neck in between bites of pancakes.

"Your neck, it's all red, are you getting a rash?"

Stiles' cheeks flushed and I grinned at him. "No, he's not," I said before returning to the skillet and gripping onto the floating spatula and putting the bacon onto a plate. I put together some pancakes and eggs on the plate as well and set it in front of Stiles. Before I sat back down, I reached up to get a mug, realizing I was too short. I snapped my fingers, and a mug from the top shelf floated its way down to the counter, and I poured myself some coffee.

"So is there a reason you're up and dressed and ready for the day on a Saturday?" Stilinski asked me. I reached in to the fridge to grab some creamer I had bought at the store and adding a copious amount.

"Uh, yeah, I'm doing this as a thank you," I said, putting the creamer back in the fridge and letting the egg carton squeeze itself back in the fridge as well. "For letting me stay, I didn't really know how else to do it except cook you guys a nice meal."

"You mean getting your magic to cook us a meal," Stiles snipped and I stuck my tongue out playfully.

"It's my recipes, this just expedites the process," I explained before leaning against the counter. "Anyways, my parents are headed back to New York today and I promised Ginny I'd be there to see them off. They're leaving for the airport in about five minutes so I really can't stay long. But I'm glad you're both awake, I wanted to do this properly," I straightened up, "Thank you. Thank you both so much for letting me stay here as long as you did. I don't know what would have happened had I not been able to escape what I thought was in my past, and-"

"June, that seems like a very well-rehearsed speech and all, but we get the gist. You're welcome here anytime," Stilinski said, and he looked around the kitchen in confusion, "Is there any way I could get seconds, or are they kind of just - doing their own thing?"

I smiled, chugging down the rest of my coffee and setting the mug in the sink, "Just ask for seconds, and then say 'I'm done' when you're finished. They'll put stuff where it needs to go."

My phone beeped at me and I checked the message from Ginny, "That's Gin, I best be off. If you need me today, I'm just doing laundry. See you later, thanks again!" I walked out of the kitchen and was picking up my bags before I remembered what I was going to do.

I walked back into the kitchen and saw Stiles look up at me. Grinning, I placed a chaste kiss on his lips and said "I love you," before turning around and walking back to the front door. I gathered my bags and stifled my laughter when I heard Sheriff Stilinski say, "Well you need to tell me something."

My father was already putting luggage in the car as I stepped outside in the crisp morning air. I looked over at the Range Rover and sighed, wishing I didn't have to leave the Stilinski house and face my parents again. I trudged over to my house when I saw my father head back inside. I opened the door and made my way upstairs to dump my bags into my room. I smiled when I saw that everything was exactly the way I had left it and quickly turned around, eager to get things over with.

I heard my mother talking to Ginny about the design of the house when I headed down the stairs. Rounding into the kitchen, I saw Ginny and my parents standing on both sides of the kitchen island. My foot creaked on a bit of the wood floor, and three pairs of eyes snapped to me.

"June, my it's been so long."

"Hmm, not long enough," I mumble, moving over to the fridge to distract myself from the awkward stares of my parents.

"I haven't even seen you these past couple of weeks, it's like you were avoiding us." She said sarcastically and I rolled my eyes.

"Ah, an ingenious thought, mother. But don't worry, I was just busy," I replied to the oranges that were in my face. I grabbed one and shut the fridge before attempting to peel it a slowly as possible.

"Yes, driving to Mexico with all of your friends and sleeping at your friend's house. Tell me, are all your friends supernatural creatures?"

I nodded, not taking my eyes off of the orange, "Save for Stiles."

"Oh right, that awkward boy who kept looking at you like he was in love with you," I sighed in despair when the orange became fully peeled.

"That's because he does love me, mom," I said casually, popping an orange slice into my mouth. From the corner of my vision, I saw Ginny's eyes widen.

My mother quirked an eyebrow, "Is that right?"

I nodded, "Yep, and I love him," I said with my mouth full, gaining satisfaction from the look of distaste on my mother's face.

Shaking his head, my father interjected on our conversation, "Back to your friends, Ginny says that one of them is a werewolf. A true alpha no less."

Swallowing, I nodded, "That would be Scott."

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but being in Scott's friend circle could mean you're a part of his pack. A witch in a wolf pack."

I was silent, chewing on another slice of orange.

"June?"

"Oh you were right, so I didn't need to correct you."

My father huffed, "So you are in a wolf pack. And not just any wolf pack, a true alpha's pack."

"Along with a banshee, a werecoyote, a kitsune, a human, and a beta werewolf."

"A beta werewolf?" I turned around to see Ginny's confused expression.

"It's a newer development," I told her before my father cleared his throat, and I spun around to him again.

"Anyway, you're in a true alpha's pack."

"My answer has not changed from the first two times you asked me," I told him, setting the orange down on the counter. "Why?"

"Well does it in any way affect your magic? I mean, does it heighten any ability, make you more susceptible to weaknesses-?"

I rolled my eyes and wasted no time in interrupting my father, "Honestly, don't you two have an airport to get to?"

Sadness flashed across my mother's face before becoming impassive once more, "So I take it you've not changed your mind about coming to New York?"

"I don't know why you'd think I would," I said, tightly gripping the counter.

"We're your family, I thought that would've been enough incentive-"

"Evelyn, you gave up being my mother when you two suggested I be cast out to the High Priestess. I hope you two realize we'll never have the same relationship because of what you've done." My parents looked genuinely hurt at what I said.

"Moony-"

"Look, when you get back, tell your High Priestess that Ginny and I have kept up our end of the bargain by staying out of New York City and away from all of you. I'd appreciate it if she upheld the same courtesy by leaving us alone and not sending anyone out here again on 'Council business,' research or not."

My mother nodded, a stoic expression on her face as she pursed her lips, "Well just in case, I've left a phone number to reach us by. We had to change the last one after - well, after you. Offer still would stand if you decide to pick up the phone," She explained in a business-like tone before shifting her bag onto her other arm.

"Well June," She said, the both of them looking over my face, "It's been nice to see you. Ginny, lovely to see you as well."

"Pleasure," Ginny scoffed.

My parents nodded and shuffled over to the doorway. Ginny and I walked behind them to the front door. My father opened the door and the two of them looked back at me. Robert cleared his throat and ushered my mother outside. I slowly shut the door and locked it before turning around to Ginny.

I was quick to envelop her in a hug and sigh. We stood there for about five minutes just enjoying being in each other's presence before I spoke up.

"Was that as awful for you as it was for me?"

Ginny sighed, "Worse, they made me sit in the living room for an hour every night and talk about life here in Beacon Hills?"

"Did you lie to them?"

"Mostly. If I told them some of the stuff you got up to they'd drag you back to New York before you could even blink."

I sighed, still hugging Ginny, "At least you guys had food."

"It was rough in that department, then?"

"I'm seriously considering grocery shopping for them at least biweekly. I mean these guys eat out practically every night. I'm worried about them."

"I'll be sure to whip up a few things that can last a few days as a means of thank you," Ginny said, turning to head to the kitchen. I watched her go before she froze, slowly spinning to face me. I immediately grew uncomfortable when I saw the large grin on her face.

"What?"

"You said you loved Stiles, that's what."

My cheeks grew hot and I scratched my temple, "So?"

"You said he said it back."

I shifted on my feet, "Yeah he did."

"June-"

"Okay, so he's my boyfriend," I said with a bashful smile on my face. I quickly rushed up the stairs, "I have laundry to do."

"June Child, come back here, I want details!"

"Can't. I'm suddenly very busy with all this laundry I have to do," I yelled from my room, smile growing larger at Ginny's laugh.

"Well that's too bad, I just bought some cookie dough ice cream..." I heard Ginny taunt. I leapt out of my room and peeked my head around the top of the stairs. I noticed she hadn't moved from where I left her.

"In a mug?" I asked her.

"How else?" She replied. "Get down here."

I narrowed my eyes, "It's eight in the morning."

"Who cares what time it is, you have a boyfriend. I want details," Ginny told me, walking into the kitchen. I giddily ran down the stairs and joined her.

* * *

"So the Walcott's were the first," Stiles explained, "At least the first that we know about. Four murders: Sean, his brother, and their parents. They were killed by a professional assassin called The Mute."

"Weapon of choice, a military tomahawk," I continued, looking down at the grisly photos of the murders on the table, "But then The Mute was killed by Peter Hale after he tried to blow up Derek with a Claymore mine."

"Next was Demarco," Stiles took over, "He delivered a keg to the party at Lydia's lake house, and got decapitated outside his car. And then last night, twenty-three-year-old Carrie Hudson," Stiles went down the list and then pointed to the pictures of the poor blonde with the many stab wounds in her body.

"It's a deadpool," Scott told the sheriff, who was on my right and Stiles' left, "A hit list of supernatural creatures. This is only part of it, the rest still has to be decoded."

"Who found this list?" Stilinski asked, staring at the names on the list.

"Lydia," I answered.

The sheriff glanced up at me, "How?"

"She wrote it. Actually, she transcribed it without realizing it," Stiles detailed.

Stilinski looked back over to me, "Banshee?"

I nodded, "Banshee."

He grimaced, "Beautiful. Alright, what are these numbers next to the names?"

"We're getting to that," Stiles assured, "First, you need to know that the code was broken by a cipher key."

"Wait a minute - you mean like a keyword?"

"It was actually a name," I answered.

"Allison," Scott said quietly, and the sheriff looked concerned.

"Her name broke a third of the list," Stiles broke the sad silence.

"And now we think there's two other cipher keys," Scott went on.

"Which will give us the rest of the names," Stiles' dad concluded and we all nodded. "Okay. So how do we get the cipher keys?"

"Same way we got the code," Stiles said.

"Lydia. She's been at the lake house all weekend trying to find the other two keywords," Scott explained.

The sheriff rummaged through the pictures on the desk, "You didn't know about Demarco or Carrie, hmm? And what about these other two names on the list? Uh, Kayleen Bettcher and Elias Town. Are they werewolves too?"

"I don't know," Scott told him, "But June and Deaton both said that the nemeton would draw supernatural creatures here."

"Here being Beacon Hills or Beacon County?" All three looked to me.

"I don't actually know that for sure," I said.

"Well that's a first," Stiles said and I sighed.

"The population of Beacon Hills is just under thirty thousand-"

"And dropping," Stiles commented.

"Wow, let's steal Isaac's former role of not helping," I said sarcastically and Stiles rolled his eyes.

The sheriff went on, "But if we're talking Beacon County, then you're looking at closer to five hundred thousand." When no one said anything, Stilinski sat down in his chair, "Look, how many werewolves, banshees, kitsunes, witches, and whatever the hell else is out there are we talking about? And what happens if the next cipher key uncovers not - not twelve names but one hundred?"

"We don't think there would be that many," Stiles responded, "There's a limit."

"Because of the numbers," I inferred, "We think that once we decode the names, the numbers will add up to one hundred and seventeen."

"A hundred and seventeen what?"

"Million," Scott interpreted as I collected a pen and proceeded to write K's and M's down next to the appropriate names on the list. Once I was finished, I handed it over to the sheriff.

"One hundred and seventeen million dollars, dad. Stolen from the Hale vault and is being used by someone to finance all these murders."

"Someone who wants every supernatural in Beacon Hills dead."

"So, this coded list goes out, and somehow these professional assassins get that list," Stilinski was catching up still.

"And a cipher key," Stiles interjected.

"And then they go after the names on that list. They being killers with no mouths, tomahawks, thermo-cut wires that can take your head off."

"Let me see, Carrie was also stabbed," Stiles trailed off, looking at wounds on poor Carrie's body. Pointing at a peculiar hexagonal wound, he asked, "What's this mark?"

"We're not sure yet, we're still waiting on the M.E.'s report. There's one other thing I don't get: How did the new assassin know that Demarco was gonna be at the lake house?"

"Everyone knows he delivers kegs to teenagers for a little extra cash," Scott outed to Stilinski. His face was stuck in one of disbelief before moving on.

"So whoever ordered that keg killed Demarco," Stilinski ventured.

"Yeah, it was someone at the party," Stiles confirmed.

"A student."


	10. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8: The Olympic Sport of Cellphone Throwing**

"June, your boyfriend is here waiting to take his girlfriend to school," I heard Ginny yell from downstairs. I rolled my eyes and threw on my oversized sweater and converse before grabbing my backpack.

"June!"

"Oh my god, Ginny, I'm coming!" I yelled back as I shut the door to my room and headed downstairs. I walked into the kitchen to see Ginny slide a plate of breakfast next to an already eating Stiles. I smiled and sat down at the countertop.

"Aren't you gonna say hi to your boyfriend, June?"

"Ginny, you're acting like I've never had a boyfriend before. But I've gotta say, you've really nailed down the whole 'embarrassing mom' bit to a tee." I said as Stiles smiled smugly at me before turning back to his food. I began to eat as Ginny put some dishes in the sink.

"I know you've had boyfriends before, but never one that you've been in love with - HEY!" She turned to face me, a girl with wide eyes and a mouth full of food who had just thrown a handful of potatoes at her.

"June, we have rules about throwing food, what are you, nine?"

I swallowed, "And a half. Gotta run! Bye, love ya." I grabbed a hold of Stiles' backpack which was still on his back, grabbed my backpack from off of the floor, and marched to the front door.

"Have a good day," She called out triumphantly.

"Yeah, yeah," I mumbled as I shut the front door. I turned around to see Stiles looking at me curiously.

"What?"

"Oh - nothing, I - uh-"

"While we're still young, Stilinski."

"I mean I figured you'd had boyfriends before but..."

"But what?" I said, climbing into the jeep.

Stiles started up the car, "You've never been in love before?"

"Have you?" I questioned and his eyes snapped over to me. He looked at me for a minute before smiling.

"Not like this," He admitted and I grinned before leaning over the console to kiss him.

"Me either," I whispered as I pulled away, still smiling. His smile mirrored my own as he continued to look at me.

I felt the heat rush to my cheeks, "Okay well, we're gonna be late if you keep staring at me like that." I averted my gaze out the window as Stiles sped off to the school.

* * *

"I wonder how much I'm worth," I pondered over the table I was sat at in the library with Lydia. She and Malia, who was sat in between us, glanced up at me.

"The Astor family is ranked twenty one in the top sixty wealthiest American families," Lydia remarked before looking back down at her homework.

I rolled my eyes, "I don't mean that, I meant the list. I wonder how much I'm worth on-" I leaned in and lowered my voice, "-on the dead pool."

Lydia's gaze snapped back up to me, "Well I'm just saying that as an Astor, you're very expensive. The entire dead pool doesn't rack up to how much you're actually worth."

"Aww right back at you, Lydia," I cooed and she rolled her eyes, "I'm very aware of how much the Astor's are worth, but I meant as a witch. I mean, you're worth twenty million, Scott's worth twenty-five, I just wonder how much I would be to kill."

"Well when Malia and I crack the rest of the list, I'll be sure to tell you," Lydia stated as the bell rang overhead. We collected our things and the two of them followed me to my locker, which was closest.

"Are you two going to the scrimmage tonight?"

"If I can figure out the next cipher key then maybe," Lydia replied, "But it's looking to be a bit challenging."

"Well that's why you've got Malia," I smiled at the werecoyote, "She's persistent, she's gonna make sure you figure it out."

"Can't you come along then and help me too?"

I shrugged, "I've got econ in five minutes, otherwise I'd totally be there. But I definitely can't tonight, I'm supporting Stiles at the scrimmage." I threw a few books in my locker before pulling out my econ textbook and matching notebook. I felt silly carrying around notebooks but it was completely worth it to see Malia learn from them.

I looked over Lydia's head to see Stiles exit a classroom and make his way over to us. I looked back at Lydia who was smirking.

"Right, your little loverboy's first scrimmage of the season, can't miss that."

"Speaking of loverboys, Lydia, there's something I've been meaning to tell you-" I was cut off by Stiles giving me a chaste kiss before continuing down the hallway into Coach's classroom. He smiled at me and winked before tripping over his feet. I looked back to Lydia and Malia, who both shared a flabbergasted expression.

"What. The hell. Was that?" Lydia stated slowly, looking at me eagerly.

I scratched the back of my head, "Uh - yeah. Yeah, that was what I've been meaning to talk to you about."

"When did it happen?" She pressed and I laughed breathlessly.

"Um, Friday?" I braced myself for the punch on my arm.

"Friday? Why didn't you tell me - tell us - sooner?" Lydia motioned between herself and Malia.

"You guys were at the lake house with Kira trying to figure out the other cipher keys. I didn't want to break your concentration."

"Horse shit, why didn't you really?"

I smiled sheepishly, "I was planning on telling you today, really. I just wanted a little bit of time to enjoy it before going around and bragging about how he's my boyfriend."

Lydia squeaked in excitement at the word 'boyfriend,' "So it's official then? You two are together."

My smile grew larger, "Yes, Stiles and I are together. With labels and everything."

Malia joined in on the smile fest, "That's great, June! Congratulations."

I hoisted my backpack over one shoulder as I blushed, "Thanks, you guys. Look, I have to go, text me as soon as you break the next part of the code, okay?"

Lydia nodded and I made my way down to Coach's classroom. Most of the seats were already filled, but as it so happened, there was a seat open directly in front of Stiles. I was quick to take it and I turned around to face him. He was setting up for what I thought was the lesson before I took a closer look.

"Is that Carrie Hudson?" I asked, glancing down at the crime scene photos Stiles slid out of a tan folder.

"Yep," He stated, arranging the pictures so they fanned out across his desk.

"Did you steal that file from your dad, then?"

"Nope, I just made a copy of it."

"Isn't that illegal?"

He peered up at me, "It's smarter."

I nodded before turning around. "Why I agreed to date you is beyond me."

"Wait, what?"

"Economic disparity," I grinned as Coach started his lecture. He gripped a lacrosse stick tightly in his hands as he began to walk up and down the aisles, "Exists in all forms. We'll take sports for example. Some teams have better training facilities, some have better equipment," I looked at him in alarm as he slowly made his way down the row of desks Stiles and I were seated in. I frantically reached my hand around and started urgently tapping on his desk. I looked back and dropped my jaw when Stiles waved me off in lieu of looking at the crime scene photos.

Deciding to let whatever was about to happen unfold, I picked up my pencil and started copying down what was on the board (Supply vs. Demand). "Unlike Beacon Hills," Coach continued, "That can barely afford the duct tape to keep our equipment together." Finstock finally noticed Stiles, and harshly tapped the lacrosse stick he was holding against his desk. Stiles leapt back in surprise.

"You know, Stilinski," He bent over Stiles' desk and picked up a picture to look at, "If I could grade you on how profoundly you disturb me, you'd be an A-plus student." I grinned at Stiles' semi-offended stare.

"Thanks, Coach."

"Put those pictures away," Coach asked him before tapping the lacrosse stick on his desk again. Before the coach could move on, however, Stiles gripped the end of the lacrosse stick and uncapped it.

"Stilinski," Coach Finstock chastised before tugging on the stick. Stiles tugged back, holding up a photo to compare the lacrosse stick with what I assumed was Carrie's unique stab wounds. Finstock finally gained the upper hand in the odd game of tug-of-war.

"What the hell is wrong with you? No, don't answer that. I don't wanna know." Coach walked back up to the board and made some room for more notes. I turned back to Stiles, who was glancing at Scott seated next to him.

"It's a lacrosse player," He stated, shoving the pictures back into the folder and into his backpack.

Scott's eyebrows shot up, "The killer's on the team."

* * *

"Can't this wait?" I whined as Stiles tugged on my hand.

"No, we need to figure out who the killer is, and the first place to start would be school equipment."

"But I'm starving, Stiles, starving. I mean, what use am I if I'm famished? I'll just be thinking of food the whole time."

"I'll buy you lunch after school."

"But you'll be practicing after school. Oh, speaking of lacrosse, is it too weird if I wear one of your jerseys to the scrimmage? Since we just started dating and all-"

"It's not weird," I noticed Stiles had a funny look on his face, and I scrunched my eyebrows.

"Why do you look like that, then?"

He shook his head and continued to lead me to Coach's office, "Sorry, I was just picturing you wearing my jersey."

I was mildly offended, "Well if you look like that at the thought of me wearing your jersey, then I just won't-"

"No, June that's not what I meant-"

"It's not big deal, I'll just wear it for the first game or something-"

"June, that's not it-"

"Really, I can just color coordinate with Beacon Hills' colors-"

"I was just picturing you wearing _only_ the jersey, June, that's all." I looked up at him as his ears turned red. I stopped walking and tugged on his hand so he'd face me. He still averted my stare by looking anywhere but where I was. I reached up on my tippy toes and placed a kiss on his lips. He immediately responded by kissing me back, and was about to move one of his hands to my face before I parted our lips.

"Maybe some other time," I whispered, and Stiles' eyes widened to the size of saucers. I smiled at him teasingly and placed another kiss on his cheek before leading him into the coach's office. Scott and Kira were already there next to a pile of uncapped lacrosse sticks, and a larger pile of ones that hadn't been inspected yet. Stiles and I set to work in helping them out, but our hope of finding an answer dwindled after no knives or blades of any sort made themselves present in the beaten up lacrosse sticks.

"This - this is pointless," Scott said frustratedly, "Most of the team plays with their own gear."

"Maybe instead of trying to find a lacrosse stick with a hidden dagger in it, we should be trying to get the game cancelled," Kira suggested and I nodded.

Scott shook his head in disagreement, "The game is the best way to catch him red-handed."

"But what if he's red-handed 'cause his hands are covered with the blood of the person he just stabbed to death?" Stiles argued, "Which by the way could be either of you guys. Or June," He pointed to me in afterthought.

"Or Liam," I said to Scott, who nodded.

"Well we don't have the whole list and he could be on it, same as you, June."

"Well we don't know anything about that list," Stiles mentioned, "How it's made, how it's updated. I mean who - who's been out taking a supernatural census anyway?"

Kira shook her head, "How do they even know about me?"

"They know about everyone."

"I think Kira's right," I said, when she looked over my way, "I think we need to stop the game."

Scott still seemed adamant, "I'm not afraid."

Kira looked back over to Scott, determined, "Neither am I."

"Well I'm terrified, and I'm not even on the list," Stiles mentioned, "Guys these are professional killers, it's their _profession_. One of them's got a thermo-cut wire that cuts heads off. Who knows what else they have?"

"Look, we have to try and catch them before they go after one of us," Scott said. "They're on the team, and it's our best chance to keep an eye on them and each other."

"But who are we supposed to look out for if we don't even know who they are?"

"Well we know that whoever killed Donovan ordered the keg at Lydia's party," Scott reminded me.

"Okay that does narrow it down," I mentioned and Kira looked at me in surprise.

"How does that narrow it down? It was a huge party."

"Right, but Liam only told his friend Mason that everyone was coming to the party. I don't know if you guys've noticed but Mason doesn't know many upperclassmen. He most likely only invited his freshmen friends."

"So what you're saying is..." Stiles prompted me to go on and I rolled my eyes.

"I'm saying that whoever ordered the keg is most likely a freshman. How many freshman are on the lacrosse team?"

Scott shrugged, "Liam and a few others, I guess."

"But that just leaves a couple people you need to look out for now instead of an entire team, yeah?"

Scott nodded fervently, just as the bell rang overhead, "I suppose. But just to be safe, we need to keep our eyes peeled. We'll meet after school to talk to Liam about it."

* * *

"Lydia said the art room was a bust, but her and Malia are gonna keep trying," I said as Stiles and I walked out onto the quad after school. I tucked my phone into the pocket of my sweater and slipped my hand into his as we walked up to Scott.

He glanced down at our intertwined hands and smirked in Stiles' direction. I looked between the two, who refused to look at me.

"Just how much do you know?"

"I know that you and Stiles made out yesterday in Stiles' jeep after we told the Sheriff about the dead pool, how you made out on Friday after the full moon, how you guys went to see _Kingsman: The Secret Service_ on Saturday as your first official date and made out through that. Although I'm not entirely sure how that really gets the mood going..." I stared between the two of them with my jaw hanging open and my eyes wide. Stiles punched Scott's arm harshly before looking back at me sheepishly.

"I swear, you two are more stereotypically girly than actual girls."

"What-? How do you figure?"

"You two don't have secrets between each other, you spill every dirty detail of your relationships with your girlfriends, a conversation we will be having, by the way; you compliment each other all the time, and gossip like no other."

"Compliment?"

"'You're the hot girl that everybody wants, Scott,' 'Oh, Stiles, those red pants do wonders for the legs-'"

"Okay, I think we get it," Scott interrupted me, red splashing his cheeks.

"So just say whatever you need to say now and have it done and over with," I stated looking back to Scott.

"Fine," Scott had a giddy smile on his face, "I totally called it. From almost day one, I knew it, you guys are awesome, I'm really happy for - shit."

"What?" I asked, but Scott already hit Stiles' chest and run off. Quickly following behind him, Stiles and I saw Liam facing off against a Devenford Prep lacrosse player. Looking closer, I saw the blood drip from Liam's fist and my eyes widened in alarm. Scott grabbed on to Liam and pushed him back as Stiles leapt in between the two of them.

"Hey, what's goin' on prep students? Welcome to our little public high school," Stiles gestured back to the school before holding out his hand to the curly-haired player, "How you doing? Stiles. That's a firm handshake you've got there," No one was shaking his hand, "Uh - we're very excited for the scrimmage tonight. But let's keep it clean, alright? No rough stuff out there. Alright, see you on the field," He spun his finger around as a signal to propel Liam and Scott back into the school.

I was about to follow them when I saw the look of disbelief and hurt on Liam's friend Mason's face. I stopped in front of him, and he glanced over at me.

"Are you okay?"

"Fine," He said sarcastically, "Except for the fact that my best friend's been acting super strange ever since he started hanging out with your friends." I could sense the resentment in his tone, and looked over at him sympathetically.

"Yeah my boyfriend really has a weird effect on people. They all just develop some kind of weird personality while in his presence," My excuse didn't garner any smile or laugh like I was hoping, so I put my hand on his shoulder.

"Listen, Mason," I tried again, "Scott's just trying to help Liam cope with some stuff."

"Cope? Did something happen that he didn't tell me about?"

I internally flinched, "No, no, I'm sure you already know, it's just about Liam's anger issues. Scott, Stiles, and I are just trying different methods to help him cope with his anger, so he can channel it into something positive, like pummeling Devenford Prep into the ground at tonight's lacrosse game," I said brightly.

"What are you trying now?" Mason asked as I glanced at the doors Scott, Stiles, and Liam slipped through.

"Meditation," I said, and Mason raised his eyebrows, "Which is actually my area of expertise, so I best be off." I quickly took off back into the school and looked around the hallway. Seeing that the closest and most plausible room they would be in was the boy's locker room, I ran inside. I heard the showers on and audible growling, so I made my way over there.

Liam was being held under the shower by Scott and Stiles, each of them taking a shoulder. Liam struggled to get out, eyes glowing and fangs bared.

"Okay, you calm yet?" Stiles asked him, and Liam let out another roar. Together, he and Scott both pushed Liam back under the freezing water. I was quick to grab one of Liam's hands and concentrate.

"June, what are you doing?"

"Empathy? Try it some time," I said sarcastically before focusing on my feelings. I breathed in and out slowly while picturing myself sitting next to Stiles in his jeep and the two of us driving alongside a beach. Something we hadn't done yet, but I knew that being in that moment would be one of calm that couldn't be reached otherwise. I then concentrated on moving that feeling of calm out of my body and into Liam's via our hands.

I heard Liam's breathing slow, and when I looked up at him, his eyes faded back to their normal color. Scott and Stiles still held him under the shower, when he started nodding fervently.

"Okay! Okay," Stiles and Scott let him go. Liam went to the opposite wall and sank down to the ground while Stiles turned off the shower.

"How - how did you do that?" Liam quietly asked, looking up at me.

"It's an ability of mine," I explained, "One I'm still learning about."

"That car you smashed, I thought you said that was your teacher's," Scott asked. While I was ranting about him and Stiles, he must've been eavesdropping on whatever Liam was saying to the Devenford kid.

"He was also my coach," Liam panted. "He benched me for the entire season."

"What did you do?"

"I got a couple red-cards," He said and I heard Stiles scoff.

"Just a couple?" He asked dubiously, and Liam spared him a weary glance.

Scott crouched down to be eye-level with Liam, "You've gotta be honest with us. What else happened?"

"Nothing," Liam feebly assured us, but he knew it was no use. "I got kicked out of school," He continued, "They sent me to a psychologist for an evaluation."

"What did they call it?" I asked him patiently.

"Intermittent Explosive Disorder," I heard Stiles scoff yet again.

"I.E.D.? You're literally an I.E.D.?" Stiles put his hand to his head in an exasperated manner, "That's great," he leaned over to look at Scott, "That's great. You gave superpowers to a walking time bomb." He gave Scott a thumb's up and pursed his lips. I slapped Stile's hand out of the way and glared at him before turning back to Liam.

"Did they give you anything for it?" I questioned.

"Risperdal. It's an antipsychotic," He explained and I nodded.

"Oh this just get's better," Stiles remarked and I rolled my eyes.

"But I don't take it," Liam continued.

"Obviously," Stiles said and I turned to glare at him.

"Seriously, you and Isaac Lahey are tied for situations where your comments don't help," I scolded and Stiles scowled. I turned back to Liam.

"I can't play lacrosse on it, it makes me too tired."

"Okay," Scott whispered. "I think you should bail out of the game. Tell Coach your leg is still hurting."

"No. No," Liam hopped up in retaliation. "I can do this. Especially if you're there," I looked over at Scott, who looked at me. I nodded my head to Liam as a means to signal that we had to tell Liam the truth about tonight.

"Liam, it's not just about the game. We think whoever killed Demarco might be on our team."

"Who's Demarco?" Liam asked.

"The guy who delivered the keg to Lydia's party," I explained. "He's a werewolf too. Remember, he was beheaded?"

"We think the person who ordered the keg killed Demarco," Scott concluded, and Liam's facial expression grew to one of enlightenment.

"Liam? What, you know something?" Scott asked.

"I don't know who ordered the keg," He said slowly, before looking up at Scott, "But I know who paid for it."

"Who?" Stiles asked.

"Garrett," Liam admitted.

I scrunched my eyebrows together, "Garrett, the blonde freshmen with the abnormally nice-looking face? Your friend, Garrett?"

"How do you know him?" Stiles asked me in a suddenly anxious manner.

"I've had him and his girlfriend Violet in a tutor session before."

"I didn't even know you led tutor groups."

"Just another thing to add to the college applications," I shrugged before turning back to Liam, "But that's the Garrett we're talking about right?"

Liam nodded and I threw my fist in the air, "BOOM! I called it, yes I did. Not necessarily Garrett, but a freshman on the lacrosse team. My idea, mine!"

"June, now you're not helping," Stiles said, bringing my raised arm back down to my side.

I just grinned at him, "I don't even care. I was right, and it feels damn good." I kissed Stiles deeply on the lips before racing out of the locker room. "See you boys tonight!"

* * *

I got out of my car, shutting the door and locking it, all with one hand. I thought it was an impressive feat, but didn't have much time to dwell on it, as I was busy trying to listen to Lydia as I walked to the lacrosse field.

"You're looking for Meredith Walker?"

"Well we were, but it turns out she was looking for me too," I raised an eyebrow at Lydia's statement, even though she couldn't see me.

"What do you mean she was looking for you?"

"I literally just got a call from the sheriff asking me to come to the station. That's where Malia and I are headed."

"Okay, that doesn't answer my question," I stated, looking around for Stiles, Scott, Kira, or Liam.

"Deputy Parrish found Meredith walking from the coast to the high school and she's apparently looking for me. So I'm going to go talk to her before Stilinski has to call Eichen House."

"Oh, I see. Look I'm at the lacrosse game, now. Keep me updated, text me anything important." Lydia told me she would and I hung up, keeping my eyes peeled for Stiles. Looking around I saw the Devenford Prep players on the field changing and warming up. I saw the curly-haired boy that was antagonizing Liam (who I now knew to be Brett) smirk teasingly in the direction of Mason as he changed shirts. Liam looked between him and Mason, and I chuckled to myself.

I saw Garrett sitting on the bench looking between his teammates an the bleachers. I followed his line of sight to see Violet sitting in the crowd, blowing kisses to him. I rolled my eyes and kept looking for Stiles. I saw him seated next to Kira, while Scott was a little farther down talking to Coach. No doubt he was asking Finstock to reconsider playing Liam.

"Stiles," I called out before heading over to him. His head whipped around and his eyes found mine. He smiled before standing up to come talk to me.

"Good luck out there, not that you'll need it," I said.

"Trust me, I'll need it," He said while putting on a glove. He struggled to do so with the other glove being on his hand and impeding his actions, so I grabbed his hand and helped him put it on.

"The MVP of last year's championship game doesn't need luck," I explained tightening the velcro straps and looking up at him, a mischievous thought taking over. I stood up on my tiptoes and whispered, "They just need encouragement," In his ear before placing a kiss on the corner of his mouth. When I planted my feet back on the ground, I couldn't help but smile at his expression.

"Well - uh - wow - ha! You - you - uh - you look really beautiful tonight," Stiles sputtered and I smiled glancing down at my outfit. It consisted of skinny jeans, a black long sleeve shirt underneath one of Stiles' maroon jerseys.

"Thanks, we kind of match. But I totally forgot how tall you are, this jersey is huge on me," I said.

Before he could say anything, Coach Finstock blew his whistle. I looked back at Stiles and kissed him on the cheek again, "You're gonna do great," I told him, "Watch out for the others, stay safe, and kick their prep school asses." He smiled at that last comment and turned around to go play. I found a seat on the bleachers and watched the players get into position.

It really didn't take much to become a bad game. Devenford already had two points on Beacon Hills, and both teams were such fierce competitors, you would think that this was a real game. An important game at that. Stiles was fine, every position he was put into per play he performed fine, but what mattered most to me was that by some odd miracle, he was always far away from Garrett.

I started biting my nails when Stiles was placed in a face-off with an enormous player. He looked to be the build of a twenty-year-old rather than a teenager. I leaned over my legs when the whistle blew and to my relief, Stiles emerged unscathed and with the ball. He quickly tossed it over to Kira, who ran and scored the first goal for Beacon Hills. I stood up on my feet and cheered loudly for Stiles and Kira.

A few plays down the line and we seemed to be doing alright. It was one particular play that sent everyone into a slight panic. Liam, Garrett, and Brett all collided with one another, and the impact sent them all to the ground. Cries of pain could be heard all the way from the bleachers, and I stood up in anticipation.

Scott and Stiles were quick to help Liam up and talk to him. I noticed a few paramedics looking over Brett before hoisting him up and putting his arms around their shoulders. Garrett got up fine, and I narrowed my eyes at the whimpering Brett. The paramedics carried him down between the set of bleachers I was on and another. Looking across the bleachers, I saw Violet look at Brett like he was breakfast.

 _So much for you and your psychotic boyfriend,_ I thought to myself before looking over at Scott and Liam. They were out on the sidelines now, and standing with a benched Kira. I looked down when I felt my phone vibrating in my back pocket. Looking at it, I saw a text from Lydia that read:

 _Broke another third of the list. Scott, Kira, and Liam not the only supernatural creatures on the field. Brett Talbot is worth 1 million._

I quickly glanced up at the doorway to where the paramedics took Brett. Looking even further up, I noticed that Violet was gone as well. Then it all hit me at once.

"Oh shit," I muttered before leaping over the row in front of me in an effort to get to Scott. My foot caught on the bleacher and I ended up face-planting into the grass, but in my adrenaline-fueled state, I was quick to hop back up. Brushing the grass off of my jeans and collecting my dropped phone, I ran over to Scott.

"Scott! Scott," I panted as I ran over to Scott and Kira. I noticed Stiles see me and walk over from his spot on the bench. "Scott you need to come with me."

"What - why?"

"Garrett was working with his girlfriend, with Violet, and they weren't after Liam or any of you," I explained in a rush.

"Who were they after?"

"Brett, now we need to go!" I grabbed Scott's hand and started tugging him to the locker rooms, "Kira, Liam, watch Garrett, do not let him leave your sight," I said over my shoulder.

"Wait, wait, June! How do you know it's Brett?" I heard Stiles call from behind me, and I turned around to see him still standing by Kira.

"I just do. Scott, come on," I made my way to the locker rooms once again.

"But June-"

"Oh for the love of god!" I exclaimed before turning around and hurling my phone at Stiles. In a perfect arch and with incredible precision, it landed directly in Stiles' waiting hands.

"Just read the last text from Lydia!" I said before running into the school, Scott hot on my heels. We made our way to the locker room only to find the medics passed out on the floor along with an unconscious Brett. I hopped over the medics in the doorway and slid on my knees to land next to Brett. With great effort, I lifted him up and placed him on his back. I opened each of his eyes to see they were glowing, and I inspected him for a cut from Garrett's blade. When I found it, there was a thick yellow liquid oozing from it.

"It's wolfsbane," I confirmed, "A rare kind at that." I turned to look at Scott only to see Violet behind him with the thermo-cut wire around his neck. He grabbed at it while she smiled.

I rushed forward but before I could do anything, Violet landed a solid kick to my gut, sending me to my knees and gasping for the air that was knocked out of my lungs.

"He said we shouldn't try," Violet explained over my coughing, and I put one foot back on the ground, "But now I've got you, I've got an Alpha." I looked up at Scott and he made eye contact with me. He nodded, reassuring me that he was fine. I hopped to my feet at the same time Scott turned around in Violet's grasp. The scent of burning flesh invaded my nostrils as he growled at her. Violet's triumphant smirk fell to one of fear as Scott slowly started growling at her.

I used my magic to grab her at the same time Scott ripped the wire from her grasp. I slammed her into the column that was right behind her and she fell to the floor, unconscious. Just as I did so, I heard a sudden commotion outside the door and saw Stiles trip over one of the medics. He looked down at Violet and Brett in surprise before glancing up at the two of us.

"I think you better call your dad," Scott insisted and Stiles whipped out my cellphone, dialing the station. As he explained the situation to the sheriff, I looked over at Brett and Violet.

"What should we do with them?" I asked. On cue, the universe answered me as Brett began to seize. I rushed over to him and tilted him to the side, letting it run its course.

"What's happening?" Scott said from next to me.

"It's the wolfsbane, it's getting closer to his heart," I explained, "He needs help, we need to get him help."

"Okay, okay, you and Stiles take him to the animal clinic, I'll call Deaton to let him know you're coming. I nodded and looked over to Stiles, who just got off the phone with his dad.

"Stiles, help me lift him up," I said as soon as Brett stilled. I put my hands under his armpits and Stiles grabbed his ankles. Together, we lifted him up, and carried him out of the locker room.


	11. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9: Ahh, Young Serial Killer Love**

Can I just say how difficult it is to quietly sneak a seizing werewolf out of a high school lacrosse game? I mean, Brett was violently thrashing about in Stiles' arms and mine. Not to mention the police sirens in the distance quickly becoming not so distant.

"Stiles," I spoke, narrowly missing one of Brett's claws as he blindly swiped the air around him, "Stiles can you hustle please?"

"I'm trying," he panted, one of the werewolf's ankles slipping from his grasp.

The sirens grew louder, and I could tell they were about to pull into the parking lot. Glancing at Stiles' jeep which we were headed to, I sighed seeing how far away it was. Eyes skirting the sea of cars, my eyes landed on my car, which was conveniently closer. I changed direction and headed for my car when Stiles stopped moving.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, where the hell are you going?" He hissed.

I gestured with my head over to my car, "My car's closer."

"But we always take my car," Stiles argued.

I rolled my eyes and kept walking to my car. I was stopped when Stiles yanked on Brett's legs, nearly tearing him from my arms.

"We always take the jeep."

"Stiles," I exclaimed wide-eyed and loudly over the sirens, "We don't have time to get to your jeep and hide Brett, nor do we have time to argue about this."

"But-"

"My car, _now_ ," I told him and he rolled his eyes.

"Alright, geez."

We carried Brett over to my car and propped him up against it while I fished the keys from my front pocket.

"Stupid women's jeans' pockets," I muttered while yanking the keys from the barely-there pocket, and quickly unlocked the car. I instructed Stiles to lie Brett on his side while I started up the car. Stiles shut the back door after securing the beta and hopped in the passenger's seat. I peeled off the lot as soon as Stiles was completely inside.

Just in time too, for as soon as I exited the parking lot and made my way a bit down the road, I saw squad cars with their flashing lights and blaring sirens pull in to the school through my rearview mirror.

I glanced back at Stiles, "We would've been stuck in all that had we gone for your jeep," I smirked.

"Shut up."

I glanced back at Brett before setting course for the animal clinic. Thankfully, he was in between seizures at the moment, but he was groaning in pain. I pressed down on the gas harder.

"Call Derek," I told Stiles, and he looked over at me.

"What, why?"

"He's only in between seizures now. The wolfsbane is trying to make its way to Brett's heart, which is only going to be worse for him."

"So?"

"So we could barely hold him steady trying to carry him out to the car, how do you reckon we'll fare against him when trying to get the wolfsbane out?"

"Not so hot," Stiles said while grabbing what I recognized as my cellphone out of his pocket.

"You still have my cellphone?"

"Mine's in my gym bag," Stiles defended while dialing Derek's number, "We were in a bit of a rush-"

"No no, I get it," I said, and heard Derek pick up. Stiles began informing Derek on what was going on while I ran a few stop signs and violated other traffic laws to get to Deaton.

"What's going on?" I heard Brett moan from the back seat.

I whirled around to look at him, "Brett, someone's tried to kill you. We're on our way to get you help."

"It hurts so bad," I heard him whimper, and felt a twinge of sympathy go through me. I glanced back at the empty road I was barreling down before looking back at Brett once more. My eyes widened in alarm as I saw Brett start to drool a yellow substance. I looked to Stiles who was nodding while staring ahead, and I drove faster, my speedometer going up another ten.

* * *

Stiles and I ran inside carrying Brett while I saw Derek jog in right behind us. Out of the corner of my peripheral, I saw Peter leisurely get out of the passenger's side of Derek's car. Not even remotely caring about Peter, I shuffled inside and helped Stiles lay Brett on Deaton's exam table. He had started seizing once more, and this time, yellow foam was spewing from his mouth. Stiles and Derek each grabbed one of his shoulders in an attempt to hold him down.

"What the hell is happening to this kid?" Stiles called out.

"He's been poisoned by a rare wolfsbane," Deaton explained, going behind me and pulling out a scalpel from one of his desk drawers. "I need to make an incision and you need to hold him as still as possible."

Tough work considering Brett was still spasming under Derek and Stiles. Sighing, I climbed up onto the table and straddled the beta low on his hips. I firmly grabbed onto Brett's forearms to try and help, but it was proving futile. I looked up and saw Stiles with a bit of disbelief on his face.

"Not that this is the time or the place, Stiles," I strained, still trying to hold on to a quaking werewolf, "But I don't really think he's that into me."

A strong jolt nearly sent me off of the table and Stiles was quick to try and grab at Brett's shoulders again.

"Hey, Derek," Stiles tried, "How about a little werewolf strength?"

"Yeah, I'm not the only one here with werewolf strength," Derek spat in retaliation.

"Deaton," I yelled over the two of them, "This is as still as we can get him. I can't-" Another strong twitch "- I can't use my magic to hold him still, it'll just make the wolfsbane spread quicker."

"If you can't hold him still, the incision might kill him," Deaton replied from next to me, scalpel poised at Brett's bare sternum.

"I think he's slipping," Stiles said meekly, while Brett continued to sputter out yellow liquid, "I don't think I can hold him."

I panicked slightly when Brett's eyes widened and flashed yellow. All too quickly, Brett shoved off Stiles and Derek, who took Deaton back with him. The next thing I know, Brett has my upper arms and in one swift movement, is off the table and slamming my back into the ground and knocking the wind out of me. Coughing, I could see from my vantage point on the ground Brett desperately trying to breathe. Brett turns around and is quickly punched to the ground by none other than Peter Hale.

Brett falls to the ground, motionless. Sitting up slowly, I see Peter's eyes glowing blue, and everyone staring up at him.

"Well I guess I still have a little werewolf strength myself," He said far too casually.

"Yeah, maybe more than a little," Derek eyed him suspiciously. I looked from Peter back to Brett, who was too still for my liking.

"Deaton," I called, crawling over to Brett and glancing at him. I opened each of his eyes, and saw he was non-responsive. "Deaton, whatever you're gonna do, you need to do it now."

Deaton was by my side once again in an instant, scalpel in hand. Stiles crouched down next to his head at the same time the vet made a careful incision along Brett's breastbone. I could hear him wheezing as a puff of yellow smoke emerged from the wound. It hovered in the air for a few seconds, swirling about before evaporating altogether. I looked up at Stiles, who looked up at me, and together, we sighed in relief.

"Is he okay?" Stiles asked.

Deaton looked up at us, "I think he'll be fine, but he'll probably be out for awhile."

I sighed in relief but my gaze quickly snapped back over to Brett when I heard him pant out. Looking closer, I could hear him repeat something with every strained breath.

"Guys, can you hear that?" I asked, leaning in closer. "I think he's saying something."

"The sun... The moon... The truth..." Over and over was all that Brett said.

"Three things cannot long be hidden," Deaton explained, "The sun, the moon, and the truth. It's Buddhist."

My eyes widened in recognition, "Satomi," I looked up when I heard Peter say the exact same thing.

Peter made eye contact with me, "Hang on, you know Satomi?"

"Not directly," I denied, shaking my head. "But eight years ago my parents and the High Priestess met with an alpha named Satomi. They granted her safe passage upstate. Last I heard she was way upstate, some small town called Rome. It was the only time I'd ever been close to coming across a werewolf. As a gift for safe passage she gave us a jar of reishi mushrooms. I remember how disgusting they tasted, and that was the only proof of her encounter. How do you know her?"

"She was a friend of Talia's, my sister. She fled the west coast when she heard of Talia's death. That was the last we'd heard of her," Peter explained.

"So she's back in Beacon Hills?"

"She must be, she uses Buddhism as a means of control. She's one of the oldest werewolves out there."

I looked down at Brett, "Someone should let her know that her pack is in danger."

Derek nodded, "I'll work on it." He took Peter by the arm and walked out of the clinic. I looked back to Deaton and Stiles, who were looking at me.

"What now?"

"Now," Deaton sighed, "Now we just have to let Brett recover. You two should go home, it's getting late. He'll be safe here."

I rubbed at my eyes and nodded. Standing up, I winced and stumbled slightly. Stiles grabbed onto my arms.

"You okay?"

I smiled and nodded, walking outside, "Yeah, just really tired of being thrown around this clinic."

We both turned when we heard a voice yell from inside, "You and me both."

Grinning, I took Stiles back to the school so he could pick up his equipment and get back to his jeep. I walked with him to the lacrosse field and then to the empty locker room, before the both of us made our way back to the parking lot.

"I need my cellphone back," I said, forgetting that he still had it. Stiles quickly took it from his pocket and put my phone in my awaiting hand. I stuffed it into the back pocket of my jeans and grabbed Stiles' hands. I slowly wrapped them around my waist before putting my arms around his neck.

"I forgot to tell you how amazing I think you are at lacrosse," I explained, and Stiles smirked, looking down at me.

"Yeah right."

"I'm serious," I argued, "You played amazingly, and it's really nice because I get to brag about you."

"Is that so?"

"Well yeah," I smiled, "It's every high school girl's fantasy to date a jock."

"Uh-huh, you had a fantasy to date a jock?" Stiles asked me sarcastically.

I pondered for a minute, "Okay, so that's more of an untrue stereotype. But now it's come true! I'm dating a really really hot lacrosse jock."

"You never dated any jocks back in New York?"

I scoffed, "Please, the boys back at my school played polo, like the pussies they are-" I was cut off from my rant by Stiles kissing me deeply. It was entirely satisfying to feel the butterflies take flight in my stomach just at the feeling of him touching me. I creeped my fingers up into his hair and tugged lightly before tilting my head the other way.

When we parted, I sighed happily, "I'm serious, you did amazing tonight."

"We technically lost," He argued back quietly.

"Well it's technically a scrimmage," I countered, and Stiles smiled at me. "I'm sure you'll kick their asses in the regular season."

"Let's hope."

I kissed Stiles one last time before slowly making my way back over to my car. "Goodnight, Stilinski."

"Good night. Hey, June?" Stiles called out to me and I turned around to face him once again. "I love you."

I smiled largely and winked at him, "I love you, Stiles."

* * *

"Good morning, Melissa," I chirped, shouldering my backpack on the McCall front porch, "Is Scott-?"

"Just go on upstairs, sweetheart," Melissa ushered me inside, and I realized she was on the phone with somebody. "Are you sure it's three months?" I heard her continue, "Okay, I understand. But um - if you could just turn the power back on even for a few hours, that would be really great. I have a refrigerator full of food that's going to go bad and obviously I don't have the money to replace three hundred dollars worth of groceries."

Pausing up the steps, I sighed. It wasn't my place to worm my way into other people's financial problems, no matter how much I wanted to. I marched up the remainder of the steps and made my way to the door of Scott's room.

"Scott?" I knocked, "Scott, you in here?"

"Where else would I be, June?" He opened the door for me and gave me a smile.

"I guess that was a stupid question," I took my backpack off of my shoulders and put it on Scott's desk before opening it. I took out a few books and notebooks, and dumped them on his desk. "So I grabbed everything I thought you would need, but honestly I wasn't sure you needed it at all. Are you taking a biology course this year?"

Scott shook his head, "No, not this year. But I was looking into a few colleges for veterinary science and they all require AP Biology be on their high school transcripts.

I nodded, smiling, "So you wanna go into vet science then?"

Scott smiled sheepishly, "It's just a thought."

"Well I happen to think you'd be great at being a vet."

"Really?"

"Absolutely. If you want, over the summer we can go take some biology courses down at the community college. And I'll get you some AP test prep books and we can look at those."

"You'd do all that for me?" Scott's interest peaked.

"Well not all of it," I said, putting my backpack back on, "I was already planning on taking classes down at the community college anyway. I'd get so bored if I didn't do something to occupy my mind."

Scott smirked at me, "Nerd."

"What did you expect?" I asked blankly, "So, school?"

"School."

* * *

"Is there a reason why I had to sit through the most boring lecture on the Founding Fathers by myself?" I hissed into the phone as I walked out of my third class of the day.

" _I thought history was your favorite subject,_ " Stiles argued.

"It is," I said as I got to my locker, "But I already knew everything that was taught in that class. I know the Founding Fathers in and out, I could practically write musicals about them for Christ's sake. So tell me, why was I alone?"

" _It's not a big deal-_ "

"You sound like you have a cold, are you getting sick?"

" _He's with me, June,_ " My eyebrows went up when I heard Lydia's voice.

"Are you guys plotting behind my back or something?"

" _No, we're just spending today trying to crack the other third of the list._ "

I scoffed, "I totally could've helped you with that. Seriously, I'd rather do that than write yet another paper on trading the nation's capital for a national debt plan any day."

" _We needed someone to tell us what our homework would be,_ " Stiles said in a skittish manner.

"Lydia's had her homework finished through to next week. Just you would've been more believable, Sweet Cheeks, but I also know you. Why are you lying to me?" I saw Scott walk around a corner and spot me before heading in my direction.

" _Okay look, June,_ " Stiles said, after most likely receiving a pointed stare from Lydia, " _I offered to help Lydia tell the truth about Parrish but I didn't want you to come along._ "

"Why?"

" _Well next to Scott, you're pretty much worth the most on that list._ "

"I'm worth twenty-two million," I said, recalling how just the other night I found out about my price tag. I'll be honest, the first thing I thought of was Taylor Swift's song. Stiles didn't find it amusing.

" _Exactly and Scott's worth twenty-five, I wanted you in a public place so no one would try anything._ "

"Lydia's worth twenty million, so why isn't she here?"

There's a beat of silence before I hear Stiles draw out a long, " _Uh-_ "

"Real genius idea keeping nearly fifty million in one place. Just keep me updated." I hung up right as Scott came over to me.

"Hey, what's going on?"

"Liam's missing," I peek around Scott to see Mason looking at me.

"He's missing?"

"Yeah," Mason replied, "Before school the two of us went for a jog, you know to clear our heads after it was revealed that our friends were serial killers-"

"The point, Mason."

"Right, he ran ahead and I couldn't keep up with him. It was like he disappeared off the trail. And then when I showed up for school, he wasn't in any of the classes we have together."

"Maybe he just wasn't feeling well?" I offered, but the look on Mason's face was enough to change my mind, "Okay, maybe not. Are there any classes you guys don't share?"

Mason thought for a moment before nodding, "Yeah, he has a weights class while I'm in band."

I looked up to Scott and nodded, "Okay well let's go and ask Coach if he saw him," I looked back to Mason, "We shouldn't worry unless there's an absolute reason to, okay?" He nodded and followed behind Scott and I as we walked down the hallway to Coach's office.

Coach Finstock looked worse for wear. He was grading econ papers at the same time he was guzzling down a bottle of what looked like cough medicine. As he put the bottle of orange liquid down, his coughing confirmed my suspicion.

"Sorry guys, Liam skipped my class today. Maybe he's sick, like me," He sputtered, and next to me, I could feel Mason tense.

"Liam didn't look sick on our run," He spoke, and I nodded.

"He's not getting back to any of my texts," Scott agreed.

"Mine either," Mason flung his hands up in the air as the bell overhead rang.

"Yeah don't worry, we'll find him," Scott assured the freshman. "But text me or June if you see him."

"Alright," He agreed, and trooped to his next class.

I looked back at Scott, "Liam's not going to text Mason, is he?"

"I don't think so," Scott shook his head, and together we walked down another hallway. Scott paused when his phone started to ring, and I saw Liam's name flash on the screen. Scott held the phone between our ears, "Liam?"

" _Sounds like you already know the answer to that, Scott,_ " Garrett informed us. I worriedly looked up at Scott.

"Where is he?"

" _Come on, like I'm actually gonna tell you that._ "

"I'll give you the money," Scott said more quietly, and I looked up at him in confusion before listening to Garrett's reply.

" _Yes, you will. But that's not gonna get you Liam back. You're gonna have to put in a little more effort than that._ "

"What do you want?" Scott asked him.

" _I want the money and Violet, or you never see Liam again._ "

"I can't just get you Violet, she's-"

" _Meet me between the buses in five minutes,_ " Garrett said before hanging up. Scott sighed and put his phone away.

"Scott, you can't just meet him," I argued, "You have to call the police, they-"

"They'll never find Liam," Scott brushed me off, "Garrett's hidden from the police for years now, I think he could hide Liam just as well. We can't take that chance."

"Should we consider the fact that Garrett is a known serial killer?" I tried, "I don't know if you know this, but serial killers kill people. It's in their title. What if he's already killed Liam, and you're next. He could just be trying to get the money that you're worth. I mean that's what he's been doing this whole time."

"Not without Violet. They're a team."

"How do we know that he won't just leave her, she's just an afterthought?"

"Because it's in their title," Scott used my own words against me, "They're the Orphans, they won't abandon each other."

I huffed, agreeing with his logic, "Fine, but I'm coming with you."

"Works for me," Scott said and burst out the doors closest to the school buses.

Garrett was trying to be inconspicuous as he stood up against a bus. His lacrosse stick was grasped tightly in his hands and I could see the tension in his shoulders. Scott and I slowly approached him as he turned around to face us.

"I didn't ask you to come here," He sneered at me and I rolled my eyes.

"That," I pointed to the lacrosse stick that doubled as a poisoned blade, "Is why I am here, so you don't try and pull stupid shit. I also have the sheriff on speed dial so don't try anything."

"Okay, what do you want?" Scott interrupted before things could get heated. "You want me to go to Stilinski, I can do that. Or I could talk to my father, he's an FBI agent."

"You think I want you talking to anyone with a badge?" Garrett remarked, smiling sadistically, "I'm not getting help from a werewolf because I want him to talk to someone."

"Then what am I supposed to do?" Scott asked and Garrett's eyes flickered back to me.

"If he does something, I do it too," I told him, crossing my arms, "We're a package deal today."

"They're transferring Violet to a federal facility," Garrett relented, "You're not gonna let that happen."

"How?" Scott asked.

"They're going to put her in a car, we're going to follow it. We get ahead of it, you stop it."

"You want me to attack a car, that's your plan?"

"You're an alpha," Garrett argued, "If you can't stop one little car, then one little beta is going to die."

"Harsh," I muttered, as Garrett pulled out the blade on his lacrosse stick.

"I stabbed your boy with a blade dipped in wolfsbane. Once it gets to the heart, bad things happen," My mind flashed back to a seizing Brett.

* * *

"So how long exactly did it take for Brett's condition to worsen after he was cut with Garrett's blade?" Scott asked me for the millionth time as I drove him to the sheriff's station.

"I'd say about ten to fifteen minutes," I was unbuckling my seatbelt as I looked over at Scott's worried expression. "Scott, he was already hurt from having Liam and Garrett collide into him. The blade probably went very deep, coupled with his body attempting to heal more than one thing at once. It could be a different situation with Liam entirely."

Scott climbed out of the passenger seat, and I was about to follow suit when I got a buzz on my phone. I looked to see it said Stiles and I told Scott I would wait outside for him.

"Hello?"

" _Hey June, it's Stiles,_ " I smiled at his response.

"I know that dumbass, I have caller ID."

" _Right, well anyways, we might have a lead._ "

"Great, enlighten me."

" _We told Parrish about how he was on the list._ "

"How'd he take it?" I asked, leaning up against my car.

" _He figured he should kill himself if he's worth five million._ "

"So better than expected."

" _Basically. But we needed him to know._ "

"Why?"

" _We need to talk to Meredith._ "

"Meredith Walker, why?"

" _She helped Lydia figure out the other third of the list, we think she'll do it again._ "

"Okay that's great and all, but didn't Lydia figure it out at the expense of nearly driving Meredith over the edge?"

There was a pause, " _Yes._ "

"And isn't Meredith back in Eichen House?"

Another pause, longer this time, " _Yes._ "

"So how're you going to talk to Meredith if she's in the closed unit at Eichen House?"

" _That's why we needed Parrish, so he'd go along and talk to the orderlies._ "

"I'm sorry, you're willingly going back to the place that nearly drove you out of your mind, where you almost died? Where Malia almost died?"

The following pause was the longest yet, " _Yes._ "

"Why?"

" _Look, we're with a deputy, we'll be fine. Don't worry about us June._ "

I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose, "Stiles please for the love of god, be careful."

" _I always am, June._ "

I scoffed, "Yeah right, that's what scares me. Your definition of careful is a normal person's definition of reckless."

" _I take slight offense to that_."

I couldn't help but smile, and I saw Scott walk out of the sheriff's station. "Look, Stiles, I've gotta go. Please, please be careful. I love you."

" _I know, I'll be careful. I love you too._ "

I hung up the phone and scrunched my eyebrows in worry at Scott's frustrated expression. "What's going on, what happened?" I asked him.

Scott hopped into the car and I followed suit, "My dad, he's going with Violet."

I sighed, cringing at how difficult this was going to become, "Do you want me to just use my magic? I could make the car stop, no harm no foul, cast a simple sleeping spell-"

"They'd know it was you."

"How?"

"Because Stilinski is going with them," I groaned in frustration and started the car. I drove it down to the road about four miles and pulled over behind Garrett's vehicle. Scott and I both hopped out of my car and slid into his, waiting to see what he would say. He handed Scott a box with something that I couldn't see from my position in the backseat.

"This is not gonna work," Scott said.

"All you have to do is stop the car," Garrett confirmed, "I'll take care of the rest."

"You can't touch Scott's dad or the sheriff," I warned, "I'll come after you myself if you do."

"It's a nice threat sweetheart, but it's pointless. I think I have a little bit of leverage over you," He reminded us and I tensed in my seat. A government-issued sedan drove by us and I recognized it as Agent McCall's, "If this all goes according to plan, I'll tell you exactly where Liam is, and we'll be on our way."

"Yeah if you don't try to kill the both of us first," I mumbled as Garrett drove behind them.

"We were never supposed to go after you believe it or not," Garrett said while looking at Scott.

"Is that supposed to make us feel better?" Scott asked.

"I just mean that we killed several werewolves. We had a thermo-cut wire along with a wolfsbane laced blade, and we still weren't going to go after you. Which begs the question: when someone does go after you, what will they have?"

I dreaded to think that he was right. Who knew what was about to come our way and try to kill all of us? Well all of us except Stiles, I hoped.

"There's a stop sign half a mile ahead," Garrett explained.

"So what, I'm supposed to take out the tires with my claws?"

"Claws, teeth, heat vision, whatever. Just stop them."

As it turns out, Scott wouldn't have to stop the car at all. We drove around a bend to find the car on its side, tires still spinning. Garrett slammed on the breaks as we realized what happened. We could see figures moving in the distance, and that was all it took for me to hop out of the car. Scott was three steps ahead of me as we both sprinted towards the car.

"Dad!" Scott shouted, desperately hoping that his father was fine. My gaze was focused on finding the sheriff, hoping that for Stiles' sake and my own that he was alright. When Scott and I got closer to them, I noticed Sheriff Stilinski dragging a bloody and unconscious Agent McCall farther away from the wreckage. Scott and I both skidded to a stop and crouched down to their level.

"Sheriff," I tried, and he looked up at me, blood dripping from his nose.

"Scott, June," He panted, and I tried to pull out my cell phone to get a flashlight. My hands were shaking profusely as I tried to find any major injuries on either the sheriff or Scott's dad. Meanwhile, Garrett hopped out of the car and grabbed his lacrosse stick, taking off the net and revealing a blade on each side. He strode towards the four of us.

"She's not in the car, Violet's gone," Scott tried desperately and the sheriff grabbed my arm in a vice grip.

"June, listen to me. Listen," He tried again, "They're still here. They're still here."

I heard a chilling growl followed by the clacking of bones. My eyes widened in fear and I looked to Scott. Between us and Garrett stood a berserker, staring menacingly at Garrett and his staff. Garrett twirled it around like a baton in a manner that invited conflict with it, and I wanted to shout out to him for being so stupid.

"You want me?" Garrett challenged. "Come on, come and get me." He advanced towards the berserker while spinning his staff in an attempt to intimidate, and Garrett thought it worked. "Yeah that's right, you're not so big. YOU'RE NOT SO BIG-"

Mr. Not-So-Big-Berserker had a friend it so happened. Right in front of my very eyes, the second berserker ran behind Garrett and pushed a sharp claw right through him. The force was so impactful it took Garrett off of his feet, and he was suspended for a brief moment by the berserker. Both of my hands flew to my mouth in shock and horror, and in that moment I had completely forgotten I was holding my cell phone.

Until it clattered to the ground, which made a very loud noise. Both heads of the berserkers turned to face us, and the second berserker dropped a dead Garrett to the ground. Scott took this as his opportunity to charge the berserkers.

"Scott!" Stilinski bellowed after him, and I silently implored him not to do anything stupid. I slowly got to my feet, ignoring the trembling in my legs, and stepped forward. I felt a hand grasp around my ankle and I jumped in surprise.

"June, not you too. We need to get away from here."

I swallowed, "I need to help Scott," I glanced back to see Scott be taken down by another berserker, leaving only me. Both of the berserkers turned and looked right at me, and I instinctively threw a shield around the sheriff and Agent McCall.

I didn't cast one around myself, for I simply opted for my other magic. I started chanting under my breath and backing away slowly to see my magic work to some effect. Explosions of gold shot out their armor, blasting it away in some places, but in others only cracking the bones. It seemed to only be a nuisance to them, and one of the berserkers lunged out to me. It was quick to take a hold of my head and slam it up against the overturned car. It did this twice, and I fell to the ground in a daze.

Through altered vision, I could see the berserkers slowly walk away from the scene. My ears were ringing and it sounded like the sheriff was yelling at me. I looked around to see his eyes on me, and if I was reading his lips correctly, he was asking if I was alright. I nodded very slowly as I sat up. The ringing in my ears didn't disappear, and I blinked rapidly in an attempt to stay awake.

The throbbing in my head dulled out most everything else, but I did notice when another SUV pulled up to the scene. Whoever was driving it hopped out, and checked on Scott first and foremost, who hadn't moved since he was knocked down. Next was Agent McCall and the sheriff, who I think pointed to me. The next thing I know, Chris Argent's face is filling my vision. I know he's talking to me, but I couldn't hear him. My hearing was muffled by the ringing which hadn't dulled. I tried to explain to Chris that there was a healing potion in my backpack which was in my car a few miles back.

I saw Argent grabbing at my cell phone. He quickly typed on it and threw the screen in front of my face. It's too blurry to read, so I blinked furiously. When the message came across, it read:

 _Going to grab healing potion, as well as Scott. Will be at hospital to pick you up, I need help tracking Kate._

I nodded and fished out my keys from my front pocket before handing them over to Argent. He took them and from the corner of my peripheral I could see him grab Scott and haul him back to his SUV. It felt like hours later by the time Chris had taken Scott and left. I was stuck with the ringing in my ears, but thankfully, I could now see the flashing lights of the ambulance in my blurred vision.


	12. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10: Headaches and Hunting**

I guess the good news was that we were all conscious by the time the ambulances arrived. Agent McCall, Sheriff Stilinski, and myself were all in the back of two ambulances, being looked over. Sheriff Stilinski suffered nothing more than a couple scrapes and bruises, while Scott's dad had a minor concussion as well as multiple lacerations along the torso. I wouldn't find out any of this until later, because when I was in the ambulance, I was still unable to hear anything.

My vision for the most part had cleared up, and I could see things up close. The ringing was still so sharp in my ears that I started to wonder if it would be permanent. My head was throbbing, and the paramedic who was assessing me seemed to be having a little bit of trouble. The sheriff was by my side in the ambulance, dealing with a paramedic himself. He kept shooting me worried glances and explaining to the paramedic what I assume was a cover story.

The EMT shone a flashlight into each of my eyes and gestured for me to follow the light with my gaze. I did so with slight difficulty, but once the light was out of my eyes, I glanced back at the overturned car. Garrett's body was hauled away in a body bag out of my sight and I shuddered. The paramedic turned around to see me shuddering before following my gaze. She sighed when she saw I was only reacting to seeing Garrett and not another medical issue.

"... June... shoes, and see if... and toes..." I tried to read her lips but it wasn't working well for me, as my headache impeded a lot of my abilities. I saw the paramedic lean down and take off my shoes and socks before she came back to my eye line and held her hands out in front of her. She wiggled her fingers and I mirrored her actions. She pointed at my feet and I wiggled my toes. The EMT smiled at me and nodded, before grabbing an ice pack for me. I reached out my hand to take it, but was overcome with a rolling sensation in my gut. I quickly stood up, swaying in dizziness before hopping out of the ambulance.

I moved to the side of the vehicle and emptied the contents of my stomach. When I was finished, I felt a gentle hand on my back and I looked back up. Sheriff Stilinski calmly guided me back to the ambulance and helped me steadily get in. The paramedics were quick to check my eyes again and started speaking to each other. Stilinski sat me down on a bench and sat next to me while the EMT's shut the doors. I breathed a sigh of relief when I could vaguely hear the doors close. On the way to the hospital, the ringing in my ears died down gradually. I could vaguely hear the Sheriff speaking on his radio and I fumbled for my phone.

There was no word from Stiles, Lydia, or Argent. I sighed, and sat quietly in the ambulance and waited to get to the hospital. I was also waiting for the healing potion Argent was supposed to bring me.

Thankfully, Melissa McCall was a nurse on call. She was quick to take the sheriff and I to a room on the side and let us explain what happened. I told her I was waiting on Scott and Argent to pick me up.

"June, you've suffered significant head trauma," Melissa argued.

I shook my head, "It's mild to moderate, my pupils are only slightly dilated, I can still move everything willingly, I'm fine. It's probably just a little worse than your ex-husband."

"Right and my ex-husband is staying the night. You should too," She said and I shook my head yet again.

"I can't. Argent and your son need my help. Besides, Argent's bringing me a healing potion, so this'll all be over in a bit."

Melissa pursed her lips and sighed, "Fine. But I want the sheriff with you until Scott gets here. And I want Scott to come get me after you've taken that potion. I'll need to clear you out of this hospital and you better have a clean bill of health."

I shrugged, "Fine."

Scott came in about twenty minutes later with Argent. Stilinski asked him the usual making sure he was okay. Of course, being a werewolf, he was perfectly healed and ready for action. Argent handed me the vial of healing potion that was in my car. I quickly downed the bottle, and puckered my face at the usual lemony taste. I quickly felt more awake and less sluggish than I had previously. The throbbing in my head dulled down to a manageable ache. I hopped off the bed I had been sitting on and Scott and I went to find Melissa.

Melissa reluctantly let me leave the hospital, and Scott, Argent, and I headed to Argent's vehicle. Scott hopped into the front seat, and I was in the back. When I buckled my seatbelt, I realized I was seated next to a very large automatic weapon. I swallowed and looked ahead to the two men.

"So, what now?"

"We're trying to track down Kate," Scott explained, "I've been trying to find a scent using this." He handed me a berserker claw coated in blood.

"Is this your blood?"

"Yeah," Scott explained, "But I'm fine, I healed. Anyway, turn left, it's going this way," He instructed Argent, and Argent turned accordingly. Scott asked him to pull over so he could follow the scent better, and I took Scott's place at manning shotgun. We followed Scott a few blocks before Argent tensed in his seat.

"What's wrong?"

"I know where we're going."

* * *

"'Argent Arms International?'" I read aloud, as we pulled up close to it.

"Yes," Was all that Argent replied with before he cut the car's engine and hopped out. Scott leapt over a fence and landed next to the SUV. I jumped out of the car as well and rounded to where Chris and Scott were.

"You've been here before?" Scott asked.

"I worked here. We used to own the building, it was part of our business," He scrunched his nose up at the large industrial building, thinking about what was inside.

"I've fought these things before. They're strong," Scott looked over at me and I recalled the time that the berserkers nearly broke through my shield. "Really strong," Argent walked back to his car. He pulled out the large gun from his back seat and cocked it.

"That's why I brought this."

Scott raised his eyebrows as he glanced at the gun, "I'm okay with that." We all made our way to the doors, and I felt a buzz from my phone. Quickly glancing at the screen, I saw a text from Derek:

 _Still no Satomi. Found Braeden, going to hospital now._

I was quick to type out a reply, saying I would meet him there as soon as I possibly could. I quickly stuffed my phone back into my pocket and walked through the door that Scott was holding open for me.

The building certainly hadn't had any inhabitants in recent times. An oddly green glow emitted around the large room encasing the plastic tarps that were hung about. Our footsteps, though quiet, still made a considerable echo, soon to let Kate know we were here.

"You shouldn't have come," Kate's voice surrounded us, not giving away her position.

"Kate," Scott tried. "I'm here for Violet, I need to talk to her."

Kate ignored him and Argent continued forward. It seemed she would only talk to her brother as she spoke again, "I knew you would find me." Her shadow appeared in front of us and Argent readied his gun.

"But I was hoping we could do this later. I just needed a little more time," As her shadow appeared so did two berserkers on either side of her. I tensed, still slightly shaken up after our last encounter with them.

"For what?" Argent asked.

"To learn control," She rounded the tarp so there was no barrier between her and us. "Lower the gun, we walk away, and you don't have to get hurt."

"Where's Violet?" I asked calmly, only to have no one answer me. The berserkers flexed their fingers and growled.

"Put the gun down, Chris," Kate calmly spoke again, and my knees started to shake.

"Mr. Argent, maybe we should listen to her-"

"Where is she?" Scott asked. Nobody was backing down. Kate snarled and bared her teeth at us, eyes glowing green. Argent didn't relinquish his tight grip on his gun. The berserkers were inhaling deeply, like they could smell the fight that was about to happen. I guess Scott could smell it too.

"No, no," He muttered, and I took that as my cue to start chanting a spell in my head. I lowly started to vocalize it, and chaos erupted in the room.

The berserkers charged at the same time Chris opened fire. Scott was yelling for him to stop but I don't think he was heard over the loud gunfire and Argent yelling himself. Kate moved to the side and swiped the gun out of his hand and punched him in the face.

The berserkers rounded on Scott, and I took it as an opportunity to distract at least one of them. I let my fear leave my body and like I had practiced before with Ginny, I let my magic take over me. It was like I was in the backseat of a car, letting someone else drive as the chants I spoke grew louder. Loud enough for one of the berserkers to turn to me and advance. I (or should I say my magic) finished the spell, and I was quickly followed by a loud bang and a flying berserker. Everyone watched as he soared through the air and landed with a sickening crunch.

I was quick to advance on it, and as the berserker stood up, several pieces of its bone armor fell to the floor, broken. I hit it with spell after spell, and the force of my magic was sending it further into the floor. I started to panic when I felt my conscious mind slipping further and further away from my magic. I was slowly losing control over it, and I tried to gain it back. In my hesitation, the berserker swiped at my feet and sent me falling to the floor. It then hoisted my up and threw me into another room, where I slid. Groaning, I realized the berserker rejoined the fight outside, and I rolled over.

I got to my feet, fully at the helm of my own magic once again. I was preparing to run back out when I saw something out of the corner of my eye that stopped me in my tracks.

At the other end of the room sat Violet, with her hands tied behind her back. Her eyes were glazed over, seeing nothing. I didn't need to ask why, her throat was practically gone because of the slash marks that decorated it. I slowly walked toward her, and in a useless gesture, I put my fingers to the side of her neck where one would usually find an artery. I found nothing, no pulse, and also no skin. I quickly rescinded my hand and wiped the blood off on her pants. I sighed, thinking about how we were supposed to find Liam without the help of Garrett or Violet.

As I finished cleaning the blood off of my hand, a loud crash from behind me made me jump. I spun around and saw Scott slide in from a newly made hole in the wall. He shook his head clear of dizziness and looked around. His gaze fell on me hovering over Violet.

"Well," I said, "Violet's dead."

As soon as I said it, we heard Kate in the other room yell, "No!" She then let out a tremendous roar, and as Scott and I climbed through the hole, we saw Kate and her berserkers walk away. Looking around, we tried to find Argent. My eyes landed on him as he lay in a heap on the floor. I pointed him out to Scott, and the two of us walked over to him. Scott held out his hand for Chris to take, and Argent gladly accepted.

"You look like you could use one of my healing potions," I tried to joke, and Argent's lips twitched upward before he winced in pain once more.

"I'm sorry," He spoke, looking at Scott.

Scott quietly replied, "I'm not gonna find him."

"There's still time, Scott," I reminded him, and Argent nodded along with me. "There's still time."

We walked Argent out to the car, and by the time he got there, he could walk on his own. He limped along and fished his keys out of his pocket.

"You need a ride back to your car?" Argent asked me and I shook my head.

"No, it's just clear across that part of the reserve," I gestured out across the street to the stretch of trees. "I've sadly gotten far more acquainted with the preserve than I wanted to."

Argent gave me my keys back, smiled at me, and gave one last look over at Scott, who was looking a little downcast. He nodded and hopped into his car before driving away. I pat Scott on the shoulder and motioned my head in the direction of the preserve.

Together, we crossed the typically busy street and headed into the woods. I pulled out my phone and began to use it as a flashlight to give us a direction. I looked up at Scott once again, and he had the same defeated look on his face.

"You're awfully quiet, Scott," I spoke to fill the silence.

He shrugged and sighed, "I have no idea how we're gonna find him."

"Well that's why you and I are out here, buddy. We're looking for him," Scott glanced down at me and smiled appreciatively.

"Just let me know if you catch his scent or something."

"Will do," We walked for about ten more minutes.

"Hey June?" Scott asked as he helped me across a stream.

"What's up, buttercup?"

"Back in the Argents' building, when we were fighting the berserkers...?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, when we went against the berserkers, you sort of - well..."

"Well...?" I hopped over a tree stump that was about to trip me.

"Your eyes were glowing purple, and you had this really scary look on your face. It was - it was like you weren't you."

I shrugged, "So that's what I look like."

"What?"

I smiled, "Ginny never told me I looked like that when I did it."

"You mean you meant to do that?" Scott asked in disbelief.

"Of course," I said, "It's an ability. My spell casting."

"What do you mean?"

"When witches perform spells correctly, it sort of opens up a part of them that allows magic to escape through."

"Escape?"

"No, I worded that wrong. Picture a witch driving a car. When they cast a spell, a part of their mind opens up to my magic and if the witch is strong enough, the magic takes the wheel."

"So you're at the control of your own magic?"

"If you can't reel it back in, yes. It's very dangerous, and most witches don't even attempt that level of magic."

"But you did?"

"Control and I go way back. I've had very few slip-ups in my magical career. That's why I tried so many dangerous things. They were all done under supervision and in a controlled environment. But I will admit, I've nearly lost control a few times."

"Are you ever scared you will?"

I thought about it for a little bit as we walked through the woods, "Not initially. I know how smart I am, it's not something that escapes my attention. I've always known my limits, and I've always pushed them extensively in the safest ways imaginable."

"But...?" Scott pushed.

"But when I developed my new abilities, it was like I suddenly didn't know myself anymore. It was then when I started having more slip-ups and this constant feeling like I was losing control of my situation."

"What did you do then?"

"I sat down with Ginny, and she talked me through new options. She gave me help when I thought I didn't need it. I've let my intelligence get to my head on more than one occasion-" Scott snorted, "- and there were moments where I thought I was above what every other witch needed: a way to control it."

"Sorry you had to stoop to normal people's level," Scott said sarcastically and I shoved him playfully.

"Anyway, if you think about it, I needed to find my own anchor. To keep myself driving that car, and not my magic."

"What was it?"

I smiled, "Not a person," Scott shot me a weathered look, "I'm sorry! It's been instilled in me since birth to be reliant on yourself before you rely on other people."

"Okay so if it wasn't a person, what was it?"

"A lot of witches used meditation as a means of control, their mantras tied them to the control they needed. That's actually what Satomi's done with her werewolves, so I suppose meditation works on quite a few platforms."

"What's your mantra?"

"Quite nosy tonight aren't we, Scott?" I grinned at him and he laughed breathily.

"Just trying to distract myself, I guess," He answered and I nodded. "So, what's your mantra?"

"Elvis Presley," I admitted and Scott stopped walking. I turned to face him. He was looking at me disbelievingly.

"Elvis, seriously?"

"Dead serious, Ginny hated boring mantras, so she would always put on an Elvis record while we meditated. It worked marvelously."

"So you kind of did anchor yourself to a person," Scott pointed out and I thought about it.

"Touche, Scott."

"June can I ask you something else?"

"Well I'm not talking to anyone else out here," I said and we trudged through some thick tree roots and onto the road where my car was.

"What would happen if you couldn't keep driving that car, if your magic were to stay at the wheel?"

I unlocked my car, "You mean if I lose control of my magic entirely?" Scott nodded sheepishly and I sighed. "Most likely something I hope no one is around to see."

Scott's expression was inquisitive, but he couldn't ask anymore questions. In the not-far-off distance, we heard a roar that turned into a yell as it echoed around us. My eyes widened and I looked to Scott.

"Where did that come from?"

But Scott was already off. I sprinted after him, which was not an easy feat in the dark in the middle of the woods. I could barely keep up with him as he bounded towards a clearing. When I got to it, Scott was doubled over what looked like a well. Scott straightened up, pulling a soaking wet Liam up with him. I rushed over and helped Scott get Liam out of harm's way.

Liam sat down on the edge of the well and gazed into Scott's eyes. I could see his whole body trembling in fear and relief.

"You're okay, Liam," Scott assured him before pulling him into a hug, "You're okay." Liam clung onto Scott for dear life, as he let what he just went through stew. Sensing that this could turn ugly quickly, I grabbed onto Liam's hand, and empathetically transferred reassurances to Liam, and a sense of calm. He was okay, and he needed to know that. I brushed my thumb over his knuckles gently when I felt the scrapes. I inspected his hand to find the same yellow substance oozing from one of the cuts.

I stood up and leaned over Liam. "Liam," I spoke, and he glanced up at me, "My car's not too far back, let's get you some help with that cut, okay?" I gestured to the cut on his chest and he nodded slowly at me, and with Scott's help, stood to his feet. His knees were quaking, so Scott threw Liam's arm over his shoulder and we quickly walked back to my car. Liam sat down in the backseat while Scott hopped in the passenger's seat and I drove us off to Deaton's.

* * *

Fortunately, Liam was not seizing by the time we got him to the clinic. Unfortunately, he did pass out, which meant we had to hustle. I helped Scott get Liam onto the table and remove his shirt. Scott stood behind Liam's head and I stood opposite Deaton while he made an incision along Liam's sternum. The cut released a familiar puff of yellow smoke, and Liam sighed. I watched the cuts begin to heal themselves, and I breathed a sigh of relief.

"I don't want to keep watching people die," Scott said, wiping sweat off of Liam's forehead with his sleeve.

"I'm not sure you have much choice about that," I argued quietly.

"Maybe I do."

"That's a lot of burden to carry, Scott," Deaton warned him, yet a glint of pride shone in his eyes.

"I don't care. No one else dies," Scott stated simply. "Everyone on that list, everyone on that dead pool. It doesn't matter if they're wendigos, or werewolves, or whatever. I'm gonna save everyone."

"Can we save everyone tomorrow, you think?" I jested, and Scott looked up at me. "You've had a long day, I've had a long day along with a tremendous headache, you should get home." Scott nodded and looked down at Liam.

"I need to go to the hospital, Derek said to meet him there," I said, remembering the text he sent me. Scott looked up at me curiously.

"Why does Derek need you?"

"I'm not entirely sure, something to do with Satomi I hope. Last I checked he was going to go and look for her pack. Are you okay to get home?"

"I can drive him home," Deaton offered, "Thank you for your help."

I gave him a mock salute before leaving the clinic. It was pouring rain when I walked outside, so I hustled to my car. I was quick to drive down to Beacon Memorial and rush inside to where Derek said he would meet me. While I was driving, Stiles texted me, saying that he cracked the last bit of the list and that Meredith Walker was dead.

"What took you so long?" Derek asked me and I rolled my eyes.

"Ran into a berserker or two while hunting an ex-hunter," I shrugged, "Stiles texted, he said they cracked the last bit of the dead pool."

"Him and Lydia?"

"Yes, why?"

"Aren't you worried? I mean he used to be in love with Lydia."

I gave an eye roll worthy of Tony Stark before replying, "First of all, I cannot believe your mind is that childish enough to really think that he's still in love with Lydia. Second, I'm not the type to be clingy and forbid my significant other to be friends or associate with other girls. It's feeding in to the patriarchy that we call modern-"

"And I clearly unleashed something you've built up for years that I am not interested in," Derek said.

"So what happened then?"

Derek walked me down the hall and into a room with Braeden inside, "She kept saying something, it didn't make much sense."

"Well what was it then?"

"I should probably tell you that we found her out in the preserve with all of Satomi's pack. But everyone out there was dead."

"All of them?"

"Except Braeden."

"Okay aside from the fact that they were all dead in the woods, what else was weird about this?"

"You know when a werewolf is poisoned with regular wolfsbane, and starts to try and heal itself?"

"You mean how a werewolf secretes that nasty black tar-looking stuff for lack of a better word?"

"Yeah. Every single werewolf was covered in it, in one form or another."

"But you don't think it's wolfsbane?" I guessed.

"Stuff like that can't kill of an entire pack like that. Someone would've gotten away, but none of them did."

"Satomi did, Satomi got away," I argued.

"I still don't know where she is, but that's not what concerns me right now."

"Then what does?"

"Braeden."

"What because you're crushing on her, or what?"

"Now who's got the immature mind," Derek accused, and I scoffed.

"What did she say?"

"Before she went into surgery, she kept saying the same word over and over again."

"What word?" I asked Derek.

"Infected."


	13. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11: Quarantined**

"Coffee?" I held up a travel cup in front of Malia's face, and she took it from my hands. She drank the still scalding liquid as she shrugged on her jacket. "Please don't spill any on those shorts, they're so cute."

"I don't get why you're dressed so casually," Malia spoke, gesturing down to my loose blouse and boyfriend jeans, "We're still going to school."

"Yes but on a Saturday," I reminded her, and we walked back to my car, "Plus, my philosophy is that you should always be comfortable while taking a test."

"Well it also helps when you're a super-genius of some sort," Malia mumbled and I made my way down to the school.

"Malia, you are a super-genius, okay?" She scoffed. "I'm serious, you are the most tenacious girl out there, and you've been working your tail off. There's no reason you won't do well on the PSAT today."

"Except for the fact that I don't know anything."

"Malia, you need to realize that you are your own worst enemy here. The only thing that's stopping you from succeeding the way I know you can is yourself. You're psyching yourself out, and you don't need to. You're going to do great."

"I hope."

* * *

We stood in line outside the classroom, and I calmly leaned on the lockers next to Malia. Kira skittishly looked around while Scott and Stiles stood still.

"Where's Lydia?" Kira wondered.

"She took it her freshman year," Stiles said without missing a beat.

"To be more specific, she's up at the lake house. She said something about talking to Meredith," I said quietly.

"Wait a second," Malia rounded on Stiles, "Does that mean I could've taken this some other time?"

"Malia, you studied harder for this than any of us," Scott argued.

"Doesn't mean I'm going to do good," she countered.

"Well," Stiles corrected, and I flicked his ear from behind Malia's head.

"Well, what?" She asked.

"It's do well, not good."

"Oh god," She exasperated and I grabbed her hand comfortingly.

"You're doing this," Scott convinced her, "Because while we're trying not to die, we still need to live. If I survive high school, I'd like to go to college, a good college."

"It's only three hours," Kira went on, "We can survive three hours."

Stiles and I gave her a look conveying 'wow, you really shouldn't have said that.' Before I could scold her about jinxing our luck, Lydia's mom began ushering students in. Single file, we went into the classroom, grabbing a number two pencil and putting our fingerprints on a waiver. I dipped my thumb onto the ink pad but froze when the paper I was about to stamp didn't have my name on it.

"Miss Martin," I called and she walked over, "This isn't my name."

She looked over the paper and then scanned through the test booklets. She pulled out another sheet of paper and skimmed its contents before nodding. "Sweetie, it says you've already taken the SAT and the ACT."

I shrugged, "Well, yeah. But I'm here to take it again."

Natalie's eyes widened, "Honey, you have perfect scores on both tests. They actually couldn't get any better."

"I guess I just wanted another go?" I tried and she shook her head.

"Look," She handed me the paper she was holding, "According to this paper, I've been instructed to tell you that you don't need to take this test. It seems that we don't have anything for you."

I sighed, and glanced over at Stiles, who had a curious expression on his face. I shook my head at him and turned back to Lydia's mom.

"Okay," I said, "But I'm Malia's ride, is it okay if I wait in the library or something?"

She smiled at me, "Sure thing."

I walked back over to Stiles and Malia who were standing off to the side. "So, it looks like I'll be waiting in the library for you guys."

"You already took the SAT? What were you doing here then?" Malia asked me and I smiled.

"Providing moral support," I rubbed her arm reassuringly, "You're gonna kick major ass today, Malia, I know it." I turned to Stiles and pecked him on the lips, "Same as you. Come find me after the first break?"

He nodded and I took my bag and walked out of the classroom. I took my keys out of my bag and marched out to my car to grab my copy of "ain't i a woman" by bell hooks before heading back into the school. I was headed to the library when I noticed black smudges all over the white cover of my book. Sighing, I glanced down to see the ink still staining my thumb. I trudged to the closest bathroom and furiously scrubbed at my hands. I was satisfied when the ink was mostly gone and reached for a paper towel. As my hand came in contact with the towel, I jumped out of my skin entirely for I heard Natalie Martin shout down the hallway I was in.

"Get back! No! Do not come in here, get back outside!" I ran outside of the restroom to see Natalie locking the doors to the school's side entrance. Scott and Stiles were some of the first students outside to see what the shouting was all about. Miss Martin ushered everyone back into the classroom before looking down the hallway and to me.

"June, you should go inside the classroom too," She called and I widened my eyes.

"But the test-"

"June, just do as I say, please, go inside the classroom." I nodded and slowly made my way to the classroom door. As I stepped over the threshold, I heard Lydia's mom speak on the phone quietly, enough to make my eyes widen.

"I need the number of the CDC. Yes the Center for Disease Control."

I made eye contact with Scott and my heart-rate quickened. Stiles saw me and pulled me over closer to Scott.

"Why are you back in here?"

"Uh - it looks like Malia might not have to take the test today after all."

* * *

Scott was with Miss Martin trying to see if Sydney, a girl who had apparently collapsed during the test might know anything about the quarantine we were now placed under. Meanwhile, Stiles, Kira, Malia, and I were huddled around each other in a corner of the classroom. Stiles was passing the time by trying to guess what had the CDC so spooked.

"Bet they're thinking smallpox," He tried and I shook my head.

"Not likely since smallpox was eradicated worldwide in 1979," I told him quietly.

"We've only managed to eradicate two viruses in history," I turned around to see the proctor for the exam sitting casually at his desk, "The other was rinderpest."

"It killed cows," I muttered, scrunching my eyebrows in suspicion.

"So we should be comforted by that, right?"

"Unless it's something worse," the proctor challenged. I sighed and turned back around to see Malia cock her head in concentration.

"Whatever it is they're taking it pretty seriously. There's a lot of cars and trucks out there," She turned to Stiles, "Your dad's with them."

Stiles stood up and turned around, "I should probably call him." He walked over to the desk and filed through the envelopes containing cell phones.

"Don't bother," The fishy supervisor stated and I rolled my eyes, "They would've shut off any access to all outside communication by now. No cell service, no wifi, no one starting a panic. Look's like we're all just going to have to wait here and see what happens," He licked his thumb and turned the page of the book he was reading. I could see Stiles tense and I grabbed his shoulder. He turned around to face me and I could feel him relax slightly. I pulled him back over to the corner we formed and looked at Stiles once more.

"You got that vibe too right?" I asked him faintly, and he nodded.

"Something's not right here," He affirmed, and right as Malia was about to question us, Mr. Yukimura came into the room and called for Stiles. Confused, he glanced around at us before walking out of the room with him. A woman came in the door Stiles walked out of and had us form a line out in the hall. Apparently it was for the CDC to collect blood samples so they could further understand what was happening.

"Kira," Malia asked and Kira turned around to face the two of us, "Do you ever get the feeling that Scott and Stiles aren't telling you everything?" I was genuinely put off by that suggestion, but immediately knew Malia was justified when Kira's facial expression became uncomfortable.

"What do you mean?"

"Like they hide stuff," Malia tried again.

"I-I think if they did, they probably have a pretty good reason," Kira evasively stuttered.

Malia huffed, not biting, "Do you know what they're hiding in the bag under Scott's bed?"

Kira's eyes widened, but I saw a flash of relief, "What? No, I've never been under Scott's bed. Or in it. Just on it, wearing clothes..." I rolled my eyes. Malia and I glanced at each other exasperatedly and turned to stare Kira down.

"Kira Yukimura," Called a woman from behind her wearing a yellow hazmat suit. I sighed and turned back to Malia.

"You really think Scott and Stiles are hiding something from you?"

"It's not just them," she told me, "But Lydia and Kira too. And I think it has to do with the dead pool."

"Why do you think that?"

"They're not letting me see the last third of the list," She said, and I paused.

"Huh, come to think of it, I haven't seen it either," She didn't appear comforted by that statement. "Look, Malia, I doubt it's that big of a deal anyway."

"Well, what was the last secret they kept from you?" She asked and I thought back.

"When they thought I was the darach and I was the one ritually sacrificing people," I looked up at Malia's pointed glare, "Okay, I see what you mean."

We turned to see the CDC official drop the needle meant to inject Kira, as it was smoking slightly. Her hazmat suit was steaming as well, and she was quickly escorted out by one of her coworkers. Seeing all the stares Kira earned, Malia and I ushered her out of the hallway and down another. I stopped when Malia did, and she looked to be panicking slightly.

"Malia, what's wrong?" She held up her hands to me, and I saw her claws. Quickly making sure we were the only ones in the hallway, I looked back to her. "Put them back!"

"That's the thing," She explained, "I can't."

"Okay, let's get the two of you out of sight..." I trailed off when I heard hushed voices come from the boys' locker room. Walking Kira and Malia down to the doorway, I sighed in relief when I heard Stiles' voice.

"Stiles?" I called out when I opened the door.

"In here," He came around a row of lockers and I nodded.

"Are you alone?" I asked him and he shook his head.

"No, Scott and Mr. Yukimura are in here."

"Okay good," I pulled Malia in by the hand and Kira followed us suit, closing the door behind her. I walked Malia over to where Scott was, and saw he was leaning over a bench. He glanced up when he heard our footsteps and I saw his eyes flashing between red and their normal color. Everyone gathered in a circled around him, and observing him more closely I could see the beads of sweat sticking to his forehead.

"It's still happening," Mr. Yukimura informed him and Scott looked over to a sighing Malia.

She held up her hands, "I can't make them go back," She referred to her claws and I rubbed her back comfortingly. I hesitated when I felt the sweat pooling under her short-sleeved blouse and looked to see sweat on her forehead as well. I put the back of my hand to her forehead and was alarmed to feel that her skin was significantly warmer than normal.

"And you're burning up," I told her, then placed my hand on Scott's forehead, feeling the exact same heat, "You're both running fevers."

"Obviously the virus is affecting the two of you in a way it won't hit any human being." Mr. Yukimura informed us and I sighed. We could really never catch a break.

"You guys have to stay out of sight," Stiles instructed, waving his hand between Malia and Scott, "We have to quarantine you - from the quarantined."

"Yeah but where?" Kira asked, "I mean, what if they get violent, like on a full moon?"

"We shouldn't stay in here, not in the locker room," Scott stated.

"A classroom is not gonna hold us," Malia agreed.

"What about the basement?" I asked and Scott shook his head.

"Too many ways out. We need something secure, somewhere nobody can find us."

"The vault," Stiles suggested, "The Hale vault."

Scott nodded, "The Hales always have an escape route. Like their house. There has to be another way in."

Mr. Yukimura took it upon himself to lead us over to Coach's office. He instructed us to wait here until he came back. When he did, his arms were full with a rolled up paper that turned out to be the schematics of the school.

"Okay, this is where the school sign is," Stiles pointed out, "So the vault's got to be right about here."

"I suppose if there's a second entrance," Kira's dad agreed, "It would probably be accessible from the basement." I was glancing worryingly at Malia and Scott. Malia was wiping the excess sweat from her face while the skin around Scott's eyes was discoloring.

"It's probably somewhere in this hallway," Stiles ran his finger along the paper, revealing where he thought the vault was. "West corridor-" His hand stretched out and his body quickly collided with Mr. Yukimura's as he collapsed. I was quick to get him on his feet and quickly look over his face. He looked paler than usual, and his skin was a little warm but not as hot as Malia's. His eyes were slightly unfocused, so he blinked a couple of times, and I moved my hands to his.

"Whoa," He said, and I felt something unusual. Looking down, I noticed on the tops of his hands a red rash similar to those who were taken out of the classroom to be quarantined.

"It's happening to you too," I whispered, and Stiles locked eyes with my frightened ones. He gripped my hands in reassurance.

"You're getting sick, you all are," Kira's dad warned before looking to Kira.

"I don't feel sick," She argued. Mr. Yukimura took out a folded Scantron sheet from his pocket and straightened it out.

"I think it's affecting you differently, neurologically. I found your test answer sheet in a pile with the others," He laid down the sheet for all of us to see. None of the rows had one bubble filled in. Instead, the outside of every row had a circular bubble penciled in.

"Okay, let's get you all to the basement, now," I ordered, and my friends nodded in agreement. I was the first out of the coach's office to see if the coast was clear. Seeing that it was, I waved my friends out and they quickly made their way down the left hallway to the basement. Scott lead the charge, and we all filed down the stairs and began exploring the basement. I went with Stiles down to a couple of shelves and started looking behind them at the walls. We hadn't had much luck until Stiles noticed a few lines embedded in one of the walls. He moved a few objects out of the way and stared at a peculiar object decorating the wall.

"Hey, guys," He waved Scott over, "Over here."

I stepped back as Scott and Stiles slid the shelf out of the way to reveal a triskele with the apparent doorknob in the center of it.

"Look at the cracks in the wall," Stiles observed.

"They're like Derek's tattoo," I mentioned, and Stiles nodded. He looked back down at the center of the wall.

"It's like the entrance outside, it only opens with claws," He explained, and gave Scott a look that didn't go unnoticed by Malia or myself. It made me uncomfortable thinking that they really were hiding something. "Anyone's claws, right?"

Scott nodded in understanding and turned back towards us, "Um... Malia, can you try?"

"Why me?" She asked and Scott briefly looked back at Stiles before holding up his hands.

"I don't have control," He mentioned, and Malia stared at him.

"Okay, I'll do it," She relented, and relief flashed over his face, "But first tell me and June what you've been hiding."

Stiles' eyes widened considerably, and they flickered over to me in panic. I shrugged and nodded, encouraging him to go on. When he only glanced at Scott in a panicky manner, Malia huffed.

"I know you think you're trying to protect me, but I can handle it," She was still met with fidgety looks and an awkward silence. "I know I'm on the list," She barked, earning a jump from Stiles, but with a glance from Scott, he became very relieved.

"Yes..." He agreed. I looked back up to Malia, and she looked satisfied.

"So how much?" She cocked her head in curiosity.

"How much what?" Stiles asked, looking genuinely confused.

"How much am I worth?"

"Four million," Scott told her, and she paused. I could practically see the wheels turning behind her eyes, and I put a comforting hand on her arm.

"Malia, are you okay?"

"Yeah. Scott's worth twenty-five, you're worth twenty-two, Kira's six, they'll take you guys out way before me." My eyes widened in surprise and I let my arm hover awkwardly in the air as Malia stepped forward to the lock.

"Progress," Stiles reminded me, grabbing my hand.

The vault was slightly underwhelming, there weren't any precious jewels, no booby traps in front of the stairs leading to it, and not even a lot of things occupied the shelves lining the room. Sure it was large and grand and had a secret door inside of the school, but as far as secret vaults go, it was plain.

I popped a squat against an unopened box while we sat and waited. Stiles came and sat next to me, and I put my head on his shoulder. He shrugged an arm around me and I curled in closer to him. Malia sat down on my other side and in an effort to be more comfortable, she put her head in my lap. I started messing with her hair, braiding it in different ways while listening to Kira pace the floor.

"You know this is where it all started," Stiles had to fill the silence, not liking that he needed to wait. He pointed to the safe on top of a small table, "That's where the money was. One hundred and seventeen million in bearer bonds."

"How do you even change bearer bonds into cash?" Kira inquired, examining a jar before placing it back onto the shelf where it belonged.

"The bank," I explained, "Or the bond agent from which you got the bearer bonds in the first place."

"They just let it sit here the whole time collecting dust," Stiles added, with a hint of spite in his tone. "You know bearer bonds are basically extinct?"

Kira sat down next to Scott, "Why does it matter?"

"You know how many problems that money could solve?"

"For you?" Kira asked.

"For me... for my dad. The Eichen House and the MRI bills are crushing him," The helplessness in his tone made me move my head up and place a comforting kiss where his jaw met his neck.

"My mom does this thing, she writes down all the items in our budget, and how much they cost. Then she adds it all up and figures out how long we have until - until we lose the house."

I sighed in frustration. I realized that I would need to talk to Ginny about all of this when I got out of this vault. There had to be a way we could help them, and have them accept our money.

* * *

Night had fallen, and my friends were getting progressively worse. I was the only one out of the five of us who showed absolutely no signs of being sick. No fever, no abrasions on the skin, no black substance leaking out of random orifices such as the skin around Malia's nails, or her mouth.

I was gently running my fingers through her hair as I looked at Stiles and Scott talking to each other. They kept their tones hushed, and I didn't have super hearing to pick up on what they were saying. The two of them kept glancing back over at Malia and I, and I sighed.

"I think you're right, Malia," I admitted to her quietly.

"What do you mean?" She muttered.

"I think they are hiding something from the two of us, and I think it has something to do with that list." Kira, who sat across from the two of us, looked on in concern.

"I'm sure it's nothing, you guys," She denied, speaking far too casually for my liking, "I mean, maybe they're just acting weird. It's Scott and Stiles, they act weird a lot-"

"You're a horrible liar, Kira," I declared, and she flinched. "Hasn't anyone told you that secrets don't make friends?"

"We keep secrets all the time, like the existence of the supernatural," She contended and I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah, but we don't keep secrets from each other. I mean, when has that ever done us any good?" She looked down in guilt, and my angst ebbed away slightly. "Look, all I'm trying to say is the last secret Stiles ever kept from me was when he thought I was murdering people. Secrets in our friend group do not end well."

We sat there for about five more minutes before Kira let out a series of coughs. After she finished, she looked up at me.

"How is it you're not sick?" She mused and I smiled.

"I'd like to say it's because I have an abnormally strong immune system, but I'm not entirely sure. Either I wasn't supposed to get infected today, or whatever's hurting you guys won't hurt me. And I have no idea what it is."

"June," Stiles called and I turned to see him come over to me, "June the others are looking for us. We should probably go up there and sort it out." I nodded and shook Malia awake.

"Malia," I murmured, shaking her shoulder gently so she would wake up. "Malia?" She opened her eyes and sat up, "Hey listen, Stiles and I need to leave for a few, okay?"

"Where are you going?" She asked, eyes fluttering in an attempt to stay open.

"Whatever's happening, it's worse for you guys," Stiles explained, "That means it's not just people getting sick, it's another assassin." Despite the sweat that still coated her face, goosebumps arose on her bare arms. I nudged Stiles and he took off one of his jackets to give to her. Malia accepted it gratefully and slid it on.

"You're coming back, right?"

I smiled at her, "Of course," I assured her, "We'd never leave you behind." Malia mustered as much of a smile as she could before I stood up and walked back to the vault door with Stiles. We walked outside and looked at everyone as the door closed, not sure if that was the last time we would see them.

I quietly went up the stairs with Stiles and emerged into the hallway. It was quiet, almost like it was empty. We were reminded that it wasn't by the flashing police lights that shone through the windows.

My hand slipped into Stiles' and I squeezed reassuringly, "You know they're going to pull through this," I told him and he sighed, "We're going to figure something out. I know it."

"Well we can add that to the list of many things you know," He quipped and I frowned.

"I don't know what you're hiding from Malia," I denied, and Stiles stopped walking for a moment. I kept going and turned the corner. "I also don't know what you're hiding from me, but I know it has something to do with that list. I haven't seen the last of the list, and now I'm honestly scared to."

"June, I-"

"I do know that it can't be good, since you're hiding it from me. And the last time you hid something from me was when you thought I was killing people," Stiles spun me around and made me face him. His eyes searched mine and I blinked away the tears that threatened to form.

"June, Stiles, there you two are," Miss Martin called out to us from behind me. I glanced over Stiles' paling face once more before I turned around and made my way to Lydia's mom. She held her hand out and put an arm around my back while guiding Stiles and I down another hallway. We walked near the quarantined students and she was about to walk us up to a few CDC officials when Stiles called out behind her.

"Miss Martin?"

"Stiles, you're not looking so good, maybe you should lie down," I looked back over to him and saw the layer of sweat I missed previously on his face.

"It's okay, have - have you seen Mr. Yukimura?" He asked.

"Yeah he's - he's fine, he's helping the other students," She answered.

"Okay," Stiles tugged on my hand and we were about to leave when he stopped to gaze into one of the beds. I looked over to see Coach Finstock huddled under a blanket as he coughed in his sleep. I glanced up at Stiles to see an idea form on his face before he turned back to Miss Martin.

"Is Coach the only adult who got sick today?" He questioned, and Natalie looked at him.

"As far as I know."

"Why is he the only one?" Stiles whispered to me, and my worry skyrocketed when the sweating grew more profuse, and the discoloration around his eyes was more prominent.

"Stiles, I think you should lie down," Miss Martin urged and Stiles shook his head.

"Yeah, no, it's okay. I'll be right back, I'll be right back," Stiles didn't even wait for me as he ran off down the hall from which we came. I made my way after him, but Miss Martin grabbed my arm.

"I don't think so, Sweetie," She chastised, "They haven't even gotten a blood sample from you yet." She marched me over to a man in a yellow hazmat suit and explained my situation to him. He nodded and walked me down a ways to another group of people. They asked me question after question about how I was feeling today, what I ate for breakfast before I came here, had I felt sick in the past week, all of which I answered no to.

I anxiously tapped my foot waiting for them to get everything over with. They had me fill out a form and took a sample of my blood. I sighed when they finished and went back over to Miss Martin.

"Isn't there any way I can contact Ginny? A - a radio, or a fax machine of some sort?" I was beginning to wonder if Ginny knew of the situation and could help in anyway.

"I'm sorry June, but outside communication of any kind is unavailable to us. We can't talk to anybody but each other," I sighed and ran my hands over my face. From the distance, a loud bang could be heard, and multiple people looked around for the source of the noise. "Look, June, could you please go back to your friends and get them back up here? We need to make sure they're alright and not sick themselves."

I nodded quickly, "Sure thing," I lied and walked quickly around the corner and into the main hallway of the school. I made sure no one was following behind me before I walked into Coach's office where I saw Agent McCall half in a hazmat suit checking for a pulse on a man he had clearly shot. Upon looking closer, I recognized the man to be the proctor from this morning's test, and my eyes widened.

"Agent McCall, are you alright?" I asked and he sighed, looking back up at me.

"You should probably be asking your boyfriend that," He muttered, looking forlornly at the dead man on the floor.

"Why?"

"He was holding Stiles hostage, he was about to shoot him," My breathing hitched and I felt my hands start to shake.

"Where-?"

"Melissa needed to tell you guys there was a jar of reishi mushrooms in the vault. I have no idea what it means." I nodded and was halfway out the door before I stopped.

Turning back around, I walked back to Agent McCall, "Thank you for saving him," He looked up at me in surprise, "And I'm glad you're okay." McCall nodded slightly at me before I ran out of the office. I took off down the hallway and turned a corner before wrenching open the door to the basement. I stopped suddenly when I nearly collided with Malia, who had tears in her eyes.

"Malia! Are you okay? Did you get to the reishi-"

"Did you know?" Malia asked me and I stepped back.

"What?"

"Did you know?"

"Know what?"

"That Peter is my father? That my last name is really Hale?" I gasped unintentionally, but I could see Malia concentrating on something.

"No, Malia, I had no idea," I told her and she looked back up at me. I guess she was concentrating on my heartbeat, for relief shone in her eyes as she hugged me.

"Hey, hey, it's okay, it's okay," She was shaking and I tried to grip her tightly.

"I just need to go home," she spoke and I nodded.

"Okay, I just need to make sure that everyone else is okay, alright?" I handed her my bag, and explained that my keys were in it, she should just wait for me in my car. She nodded and was about to walk off when she stopped.

"Stiles has the copy of the last third of the list, if you want to go look at it," She said and I nodded. I watched her walk off before I made my way down the stairs into the basement. My footsteps were unsure, unsure of what I would find when I got to the vault, and unsure of what was actually on the list.

I rounded the corner to see Scott holding on to Kira, both seeming to be in a much better condition than when I left them. Behind Kira was a shattered jar of what must have been the reishi mushrooms. Stiles stood up slowly and turned around. My jaw dropped when I saw the smeared blood on his face and the spatter of it on his white tee shirt and hoodie. But he was alive and breathing, and that's all that mattered.

I ran to Scott and Kira and gave the both of them giant hugs, telling them each that I was glad they were okay. When I stood back from the both of them, I smacked both of them upside the head simultaneously. They each rubbed at their heads and gave me a "what the hell?" look.

"That was for Malia," I scolded and they looked down. I looked over to Stiles who was looking at me sadly. I breathed out deeply and walked over to him. I wiped at the blood on his face before kissing him deeply, hoping that he felt my relief.

"Please don't ever get shot," I told him and he gave me a small smile.

"I'll work on it." I nodded and smacked him upside the head harshly. He dropped a sheet of crumpled paper he was holding in lieu of rubbing at his head.

"You guys should really be ashamed of yourselves, keeping something like that from Malia," I chided and bent down to pick up the white sheet of paper. I looked back up at Stiles, who paled under the blood that sat on his face.

"I'm giving you one chance to tell me what I'll find on this list," I said lowly, and Stiles swallowed. He glanced over at Scott and Kira, and so did I. Scott closed his eyes in resignation and nodded slowly.

"Well?" I snipped louder, making Stiles jump.

Seeming to have trouble finding the words, he remained quiet. I huffed in frustration before opening the damned list myself. I didn't have to look very hard for any answer, for at the top of the list sat Robert and Evelyn Astor, worth three million dollars a piece.


	14. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12: Operation: Kill Scott McCall**

I think the shock I experienced must have wiped any and all expression from my face, for Stiles scrunched his eyebrows in concern. He gently touched my shoulder, but quickly rescinded his hand when I flinched harshly underneath his touch.

"June?" He asked, and I gaped up at him. I looked over to Scott and Kira, who were sizing me up, gaging how I would react to the fact that my parents, who weren't even in Beacon Hills at the current moment, were somehow on the dead pool. I let it settle for a minute that I would have to reach out to my parents despite never wanting to speak to them again, and everything came crashing down on me all at once. Every repercussion this would have, every terrible and grueling scenario playing out in my head, all starting with word getting out to the other covens about me as punishment.

"Yeah," I started almost silently, and I saw Stiles lean in slightly to hear me better, "Yeah this is something that shouldn't have been kept a secret. Like at all."

"June, I-" Stiles tried to grab my hand and I wrenched it out of his grasp and pinched the bridge of my nose.

"I - I have to go," I explained, frustration and hurt overtaking me all at once, "I need to deal with this," I waved the piece of paper that was still clutched in my hand in front of his face.

"Would you let me explain-?" He stopped when he saw the tears gathering in my eyes.

"I guess I was right," I relented, even though I really wished I wasn't right at all, "The secrets you keep from me never end well."

Stiles' eyes widened and he stepped closer to me, "June, please-"

"Please leave me alone," I whispered, and I saw sadness shine in my very new boyfriend's eyes, "Please, just please." I retreated to the entrance of the vault and slowly turned around to see all of them staring guiltily at me.

I straightened my posture and looked Scott dead in the eye. It looked like it took all the courage he had not to break my stare, and he kept level with me.

"You all need to trust us a little more," I rebuked, "And keep us in the loop of everything. I mean it, we're still with you, but not for very much longer if you keep shit like this up." Scott nodded quickly, followed by Kira, and an upset-looking Stiles.

"June-" Scott tried but I held my hand up and he faltered.

"I know your guys' dads are looking for you. You should go find them." I sniffled a tad and walked away from them. Once I was at the top of the stairs I heard Scott mumble something that I didn't bother to try and decode.

I walked slowly out of the school, dodging all the police officers, Lydia and her mom, the CDC who were still cleaning up and made my way to the parking lot where Malia, true to her word, was sitting in the passenger's seat of my car. I slowly slid into the car and let the slam of the car door echo around us to fill the silence. I sighed deeply and rubbed my hands harshly over my face before grunting in frustration and colliding my hands with the steering wheel. I did that a few times before I remembered Malia was in the car with me. I snapped my gaze over to her to see she didn't even flinch, she was still just staring straight ahead.

"Malia?" I called out softly, putting my hand gently on her shoulder. I could feel her muscles tense but they were quick to relax when she realized I was on her side. She didn't take her eyes off of the high school we still faced. It was almost unnerving until she blinked and looked over at me.

"I'm sorry, I don't really like getting that angry, especially in front of people," I apologized and she shrugged her shoulders lightly.

"I thought about doing the same thing but it would've really damaged your car," A breath of laughter escaped my lips at her remark before we were one again enveloped in silence.

"I'm really adopted?" She prompted and I looked at her face. She swallowed thickly and was blinking rapidly to avoid crying.

"It looks that way," I answered and she shut her eyes in defeat. "But you know some of the best people are adoptees."

"Like who?"

"Pssh, Clark Kent, A.K.A. Superman; Princess Leia, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Harry Potter, I mean the list just goes on," Malia's lips twitched as I listed all the names, but her face hardened once more.

"Those are all just fictional characters, June, they're not real," She commented, moving her gaze back to the school.

I pursed my lips when a lightbulb went off in my head, "Well I'll give you one who's real then."

"Who?"

"Me," I stated and I heard a hitch in her breathing. She slowly turned her head back towards me and I could see a few tears fall. I leaned over the console and wrapped my arms around her. Her breathing was shaky for several minutes, and I could feel the tears on my blouse, but I never heard her sob. It broke my heart a little at how strong she was, and I was never sure if she knew it.

When she pulled away, she wiped her eyes quickly and looked at me in earnest. "Was it any better knowing?" She asked me, hopeful for a good answer that I wasn't sure I could give.

"No, not really," I told her and she sighed. I saw most of the students with their concerned parents start to file out of the school, so I took that as my cue to start my car. I connected my stereo system to my Spotify, and immediately shuffled a playlist that I hadn't really needed until recently.

Malia scrunched her nose when she heard the song, "Is this Elvis?"

I gave a small smile, "Yeah. It - it just calms me down." And as cliche as it sounds, when we pulled out of the school parking lot, I swear I saw Stiles staring after me in my rearview mirror.

* * *

My hair had stopped dripping from the long shower I took and was pulled back in two Dutch braids. Ginny had been rearranging furniture when I walked in the room, stating that keeping idle at the school would have made her collapse into an anxiety attack of some sort, so she kept busy at home. I was just honestly surprised that she hadn't cooked into oblivion.

After my shower I called Ginny into the kitchen and we stood on opposite ends of the counter as I showed her the list. I let her read over it, and saw her eyes widen as she looked over the names on the list. Thinking back to how she nearly packed up the house upon finding out that _my_ name was on the list, I dreaded to think of what she would say about finding out my parents.

"Shit," Was all that came out of her mouth after about five minutes, and I quirked an eyebrow up at her.

"Is that all you're gonna say?" I pestered, "You're not going to clue me in on what you're thinking we should do?"

"Well what I'm thinking is that it's lucky that Derek Hale has a secret vault so we can take refuge there after the hell that will rain down on us for this," Her tone was very casual, but the statement made my eyes widen.

"Ginny, we can't hide from this."

"Ugh, not even a little?" My mouth dropped open at the ludicrousness that was my Guardian.

"No," I opened my arms out in a condescending manner. She rolled her eyes.

"Well then, what do you propose we do? I mean - we'll have to take the blame for this even though it's not anywhere close to being our fault. We'll still be under scrutiny-"

"I know that, Gin, but what choice do we have?" I tried to reason. "If they die, we're in even more trouble. And as much as I might hate myself for admitting it, I can't lose my parents. Not like this."

Whatever resolve was in Ginny's mindset I could see dissolve at my last statement. She sighed and looked me in the eye. I shrugged and sighed.

"As much as I don't want to, and believe me, I really don't want to, we have to tell them."

"But how, I thought you threw away that phone number?"

I shook my head, "You thought wrong. I'll talk to them, I'll make sure they're aware and that they don't bring anyone else into this matter," Ginny looked skeptical and I grabbed the list from the counter, "Ginny, it's going to be fine." I slowly walked back up to my room and shut the door softly.

I plopped down on my bed and grabbed my cellphone off of the nightstand it was currently charging on. I dug around the drawer in my nightstand and pulled out the card my mother slipped me before she left containing their phone number. I put the card and the phone next to each other and dug my face into the fuzzy blanket that sat atop my comforter.

My head snapped up when I felt my phone vibrate, and I saw Stiles' name flash across the screen. If I were an anime character in that moment, a thundercloud would have appeared over me and started raining all over my attitude. I gloomily watched my phone send him to voicemail, and I noticed that it was his fifteenth call.

I watched the clock tick by on my phone for about twenty more minutes, and in that period, Stiles called about four more times. Ginny quietly knocked on my door and walked in and plopped onto my bed next to me. I turned my head see her already facing me.

"Did you call them?"

"Not yet, but Stiles has called me-" I checked my phone, "-nineteen times." My phone buzzed again and we looked back at it. "Make that twenty."

"Why are you not talking to him again?"

"Partly because no one bothered to tell Malia she was adopted, but mostly because he didn't tell me about how Evelyn and Robert were on the list."

"Did you ask him why?"

I scrunched my eyebrows together, "I was focused on the fact that I had to deal with my parents again and my boyfriend didn't tell me about it," I argued.

My phone buzzed again and we both glanced at it again. Once again, I watched it go to voicemail and I flinched.

Ginny inhaled as she was about to say something but I quickly held up my pointer finger and shushed her. "Ah, ah, ah, let me be mad today."

She rolled her eyes, "Fine," She relented, "But you need to call your parents now or I will." She climbed off of my bed and treaded across the floor to the hallway, where she promptly closed the door to my room. I huffed and swiped at my phone as it started vibrating again. I sent the call from Stiles to voicemail myself and dialed the number my mother gave me. It rang out three times exactly before my mother's crisp voice was on the other end.

"Evelyn Astor speaking."

"Are you with anyone else from the coven right now?" I heard a slight gasp of surprise and the clacking of her high heels on the expensive hardwood. My mother was never very subtle over the phone no matter how hard she tried, so I could hear her urgently ushering my father over to where she was standing.

"Hello?" I drawled.

"Still here, and no, the coven left about twenty minutes ago. June?"

I sighed, "Yes, it's me."

"Have you reconsidered our offer, are you wanting to come back to New York?" It frustrated me how that was the only thing on her mind after hearing her estranged daughter willingly call her.

"No, Evelyn, I haven't."

A slight pause for her to recover from her disappointment, "Oh. Then why are you calling us?"

"Well I know Robert is there with you so you might as well put me on speaker phone, you both need to hear this."

"June, that's absurd, your father wouldn't eavesdrop on us like that," My mother tried to deny and I gave a giant eye roll that I hoped was conveyed all the way to New York.

"Mother just put him on speaker, this is important," I said and she huffed slightly in annoyance.

"Alright," All formalities were out the window now that she wasn't going to get what she wanted, "What was it you were calling for?"

I sighed deeply and started picking fuzz out of my blanket, "There's no easy way to say this-"

"Are you pregnant?" I blinked in surprise.

"What? No, Jesus, why would you even think that?"

"Usually when a conversation with your child starts with 'There's no easy way to put this' it's one of two things: drugs or pregnancy. I was hoping for the latter, that's a much less scandalous and expensive happenstance."

"No, Evelyn, I'm not pregnant," There was an awkward beat of silence, "Nor am I on drugs."

"Well then what is it?"

"Evelyn-"

"I mean I can't imagine you're in need of money, we taught you well in that area."

"Evelyn-"

"It couldn't be boy troubles, that boy is just too in love with you to think you've done anything wrong in the world ever-"

"Mother!" I snapped and she gasped in surprise.

"Well what is it then, June?"

"I think you guys are in danger. Real, life-threatening danger."

My mother had the audacity to scoff, "Well what on earth makes you think that?"

"When you two were in Beacon Hills, the Hale family was robbed of one hundred and seventeen million dollars-"

"Oh, what an inconvenience."

I flinched in irritation before continuing, "Anyways, he was robbed of all that money, and a few days later, supernatural creatures were being murdered in cold blood."

"I'm failing to grasp the point here, June."

"If you let me finish... Alright, so we discovered that someone in Beacon Hills made a list of every supernatural creature living here, and is using the Hales' stolen money to finance them all."

There was a dramatic silence followed by my father, "Are you telling us this because you're on the list? How much are you worth?"

"I'm calling to tell you that because you two were in the wrong place at the wrong time, you guys ended up on the list as well."

I heard my mother inhale sharply, "Oh my god. How much are we worth?"

I rubbed my forehead, "Three million dollars a piece."

I almost laughed when I heard Robert scoff, "Three million? I could buy myself out of the list multiple times over."

"Look, I just needed to give you two the heads up to be on the lookout. Four assassins have come after us already."

"I'm sure you took care of them already," Evelyn sounded like she was trying to reassure herself more than anything.

"We barely escaped with our lives on the last one. He chemically altered canine distemper to infect werewolves through an ink pad we needed to use on our PSAT's. These guys are smart, and I've never seen anything like this before."

"Well that's all happening in Beacon Hills, surely they won't come to New York-"

"Mom," I said gently, and she stopped talking, "Most people don't have three million dollars to throw around. Someone could already be on their way to you. Just - just be careful. I may not forgive you guys or think that in any means you're okay in my book, but I don't want you to die. I've never wanted that. So please, just please be careful. Promise me you'll be careful."

The longest silence ensued before I heard them both say, "We promise, June."

I sighed and shut my eyes in relief, "I need to go, I have to check in on a friend."

"Well thank you for letting us know, June."

"You're welcome."

"We love you, June," I froze, it was something I hadn't heard in a long time, and mixing that in with my already unstable emotions wasn't doing me any favors. I blinked the tears out of my eyes and cleared my throat.

"I have to go - um - bye," I was quick to hang up my phone and throw it back on my bed. I slammed my head into my pillows and groan frustratedly when I saw Stiles' name flash on my screen again. Seeing his face on my screen mixed in with the conversation I just had with my parents sent me into an emotional downward spiral. Ginny walked into my room five minutes later to see me practically in a puddle of my own tears.

* * *

I was squeezing into my skinny jeans when I heard the doorbell ring one afternoon. The reason I wasn't dressed earlier was because Ginny and I had pulled a late night finishing up our day-long marathon of Tom Cruise's entire career. Following that was a saddening dream of sleeping with Stiles in his bed. We were just trying to find a comfortable way to sleep, and I ended up spooning him. It was so strangely realistic that when I woke up in my own bed I was disoriented and ultimately disappointed.

I zipped up my pants and hurried down the stairs when the doorbell rang again. To my surprise, it was Malia, looking like she hadn't slept that much these past few days either. I cocked my head in suspicion when she had a curious look on her face. Well, curious for Malia.

"Hi," She hesitantly started.

"Hi," I replied, drawing the word out slightly in confusion. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, um - I just thought I should let someone know before I go, I'm going back to the Hale vault."

"Okay, why?"

"I mean Peter kept his bonds or whatever in that vault so who's to say that I won't find something on me?"

"Are you sure you want to go down that road?" I cautioned and I saw her body tense up defensively. "You might run into Peter along the way."

"He's my father," She snapped harshly, and I didn't even have the heart to flinch.

"I know, and you're entirely justified in wanting to find out more about who your parents are, but it's also Peter Hale."

"Okay, what's your point?" Malia contended and I sighed, leaning against the doorframe.

"From everything I've heard about him and my own experiences, he always seems to get what he wants. He's manipulative, not to mention an actual murderer. I mean, Sheriff Stilinski told me what he did to the Mute, and that's not even the worst of it."

"I know, but I just want answers I guess."

I rubbed my hand over my face tiredly, "Malia, I'm not going to stop you, but you should also know that knowing who your parents are doesn't complete you. You do."

"I know, I was just letting you know where I was going," She turned to leave and I grabbed her arm.

"Malia, I'm serious. If you think Peter is doing you any kind of favor, you're wrong. He may be your father, but he never raised you, he doesn't know the self-sacrifice of a parent. He's always thinking about himself first and foremost. Let me know what you find." She nodded and walked down my front path. I shut the door and walked into the kitchen where Ginny was still cleaning up the dishes from this morning's late breakfast.

"Who was at the door?"

"Malia," I answered, walking over to the Keurig on the counter and selecting a coffee roast. I pulled a mug down from the cupboard and turned on the machine. "She was just letting me know where she was going today."

"Does she normally tell someone?" Ginny asked and I looked over my shoulder.

"No, but this was concerning Saturday and Peter," Ginny nodded and went back to scrubbing. I placed the now full mug of coffee on the counter. Letting it cool down, I went to the downstairs bathroom and re-braided the dutch braids on my head. I walked out and was about to take a sip of coffee when the doorbell rang again. Rolling my eyes, I grabbed my mug and walked over to the front door. Much to my surprise, it wasn't Malia.

"Scott? What are you doing here?"

"I know you're mad at me, well, at all of us, so I was wondering if you'd maybe wanna help kill me?" My eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"I'm sorry did you just say-"

"Kill me? Yes I did," Scott interrupted, smiling somewhat triumphantly.

I paused, shifting on my feet, "So I suppose I won't get any more information unless I go and help you."

He started rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet, and he had a childish glint in his eye, "That's correct. And I'm also going to need you to bring your laptop."

I sighed and rolled my eyes, simultaneously waving him inside, "Give me a minute." I walked back into the kitchen and started chugging my coffee at an alarming rate. I was down to the last couple of gulps when some of it spilled on my blue tee shirt.

"Ow, fuck, son of a bitch," I exclaimed and Ginny turned around to see my cursing at the hot coffee that was now on my clothes. She rolled her eyes and took the mug from my hands, pouring the remnants down the drain.

Frowning, I pouted until Ginny waved me off, "Go on, I know you have stuff to do."

Sighing, I turned around, "I'll fill you in when I know more." Running down the hallway past Scott, I raced up the stairs. At the same time, I tore off my shirt and threw it in the laundry basket when I entered my room. I found a white blouse in my closet that Lydia bought me and threw it on as well as some riding boots. Grabbing my phone off the charger, I tucked it in my jean pocket and took my computer, leaving my room.

Heading back into the kitchen, I saw Scott standing there awkwardly as Ginny stared him down shamelessly. Smiling to myself, I fished my car keys out of a bowl on the counter and turned to face the two of them.

"Ready then?" I asked, and Scott looked almost relieved to see me.

"Yes."

"Not quite," Ginny droned, staring even more intently at Scott if that was possible. I grinned in a teasing manner as Scott squirmed under her gaze. Grabbing his arm, I pulled him out of the kitchen and into the foyer.

"Where to, McCall?"

"My house, I have to go pick up Liam."

"Okay," I assented, heading to my car.

"Stiles is gonna be there," He called out to me.

"I expected nothing less," I breezed past his statement, trying not to think of how I was heading straight into a world of hurt.

"And you're okay with that?" I froze and turned around to face him.

"I'm not one to make assumptions, but I'm guessing whatever we're doing has to do with the benefactor, right?"

Scott nodded, "Yeah."

"Then who am I to let my feelings get the better of me? If your life's on the line, I'm perfectly fine with putting this argument aside so we can protect you."

"Are you sure? I mean the last time you were this angry with Stiles you didn't speak to us for two weeks."

I flinched and unlocked my door, "Yeah, and the last time that happened Boyd died. I could've done something and I didn't. I won't make that mistake again," Scott looked like he wanted to say something but I beat him to it, "I'll see you at your house." He nodded and I hopped in my car. I watched him speed off before I pulled out of the driveway myself, making my way to his house.

When I pulled up to his residence, the only car parked was Stiles' blue jeep. I shakily grabbed onto the steering wheel and sighed. I wasn't ready to face him and what he had to say, so I opted to wait in the car until Scott or Kira or Lydia arrived. It was cowardly, but in my emotional state, I wasn't above it.

Scott pulled up about five minutes later with Liam on the back of his bike. I immediately got out of the car and walked up to the two of them. Scott quirked an eyebrow at me sitting alone in his driveway, but decided against asking me. Together, the three of us walked inside. We gathered in the kitchen slash dining room area. I saw Stiles' figure fidgeting in my peripheral when I turned to face him.

He looked a little worse for wear, hair all over the place like he ran his hands through it a few times. His eyes had a purplish tint underneath them, like he hadn't gotten more than a few hours of sleep in the past few nights. I glanced down at his intertwined hands to see the skin around his fingernails was rough, and patches of it were a little bloody. I didn't take him for a nail biter, but I guess I didn't take him for a secret keeper either. He opened his mouth to say something to me when a knock sounded at Scott's door.

I ran to answer it and saw Kira on the other side. She looked slightly surprised to see me, but smartly kept her mouth shut. She walked in and we all gathered around Scott's kitchen table. Staring at each other, Scott nodded.

"Okay, so will someone please explain why the hell we're killing Scott?" I asked.


	15. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13: Operation: Kill Scott McCall, the Sequel**

"Getting to that, just take out your laptop," Scott answered, and I put my laptop out on the kitchen table. Kira, Liam, and Stiles all followed my actions, and I quirked my eyebrow at them.

"Is four enough?" Kira asked.

"Depends on how many cameras they have, but I think so," Stiles explained quietly.

"Are we really doing this?" Liam inquired hesitantly.

"We're doing it," Scott responded with an absolute certainty that put me at an unease.

"By 'it' do you mean killing Scott?" I asked no one in particular, "Because even though I am here and you are including me, I still somehow feel like I don't know everything."

"Getting to that as well," Stiles remarked, and I locked eyes with him. Before I could say or do anything I might regret, Liam spoke.

"Isn't it kind of dangerous?" He chimed in.

Stiles broke my stare, "Yeah it's incredibly dangerous, and borderline idiotic."

"Have you guys done something like this before?" Liam looked as if he already knew the answer, and was silently praying for it to not be true.

"Something dangerous or idiotic?" Stiles asked him.

"I think it's a 'yes' to both," I acknowledged Liam and he nodded resignedly.

"You don't have to be a part of it if you don't want to," Scott comforted, but Liam quickly shook his head.

"I'm not scared."

Stiles grabbed his shoulder and winked at him, "Then you're borderline idiotic." He turned back to the rest of us, "If we do this, we don't know what's coming for us. You know that, right?"

"How do we even know something's definitely coming?" Kira requested.

"Because the tape from Garrett's bag said 'visual confirmation required,'" Scott elaborated, and I recalled him saying in passing something about the bag of money.

"Simon said the same thing," I glanced up when Stiles referred to the Chemist that nearly killed him two days ago. "He couldn't get paid by the benefactor until he had proof that you guys were dead."

"So the idea is, what if you kill someone on the dead pool, but you can't send the proof?" I nodded in understanding at Scott's question, realizing where this was headed.

"You don't get paid," I concluded, and Scott nodded at me.

"But how does that get us any closer to the benefactor?" Liam pointed out.

"He still needs to know if the target is really dead," Scott replied.

"Or she," I countered under my breath.

"Especially if it's someone high on the list," Stiles went on.

"So if he wants visual confirmation," Liam started.

"They're gonna have to come get it themself," I finished, and the rest of the group nodded at me. "I still don't understand why we're offering up Scott to die."

"He's not going to die," Kira stated firmly and I had to hold myself back from rolling my eyes.

"Well no, I get that, but why number one on the list? I understand it would have to be someone high up for the benefactor to appear, but why Scott?"

"Whoever we offer up needs to be believably dead," Stiles explained to me and his gaze didn't quite meet my eyes. "The way we're going to do that is a way that only an alpha can survive."

"Which is what way?"

Kira held up her hand, which was now crackling with electricity, "We stop his heart."

My eyes widened considerably, and when the glow emitting from her hand died down, I couldn't help it. I rolled my eyes practically into oblivion.

"You see, had I known about this plan earlier, I definitely could have whipped up some drought or something that was infinitely safer than this plan."

"You didn't talk to us for two days," Scott countered, and my eye twitched.

"Call me stubborn, but I don't think that's my fault. Scott, if we can't restart your heart in a certain time window, you could die."

"That's why we need to work fast."

I shook my head, "We're not doing this without help, right?"

"My mom is going to come and help," Kira explained and I nodded, looking over to Scott.

"And your mom?" I asked him and he scrunched his eyebrows.

"What about my mom?"

I rolled my eyes, "Well when you're dead, they usually notify your immediate family. Your mom is your legal guardian, I think someone will tell her that her only son is dead. You might want to tell her what's going on before she finds out something that isn't actually true."

Scott paused for a moment, "You might be right."

"I'm absolutely right. I don't think we should do this without all the help we can get."

"Well Lydia is up at the lake house looking around for more answers, who else could we get?" Kira asked me.

I pursed my lips, "I definitely think we should talk to Argent. We shouldn't do this without his help."

"But Argent's busy with Kate," Stiles argued back.

"All the more reason to tell him."

Scott looked at me skeptically, "I'm failing to see the point."

"Kate kidnapped and murdered Violet because she wanted information on the benefactor," I huffed. "Don't you think that us luring the benefactor out of hiding might interest her in any way? She's on the list too."

"Yeah, but-"

"You guys have only been expecting that assassins might come after us because of this," I interrupted Stiles impatiently, "What about the list of supernatural creatures that have it out for the benefactor as well? I mean the Walcotts were on the list and they were cannibalistic killers. You're only anticipating half the fight. We need a hunter to anticipate the other half."

Scott looked at the others in thought and I tapped my fingers on the table in impatience.

"She's right," He relented, "Argent should know."

"Well that's settled then," I addressed the group, gathering up my computer, "I'll go and talk to Argent. I'll even help him talk to the benefactor for you guys, and meet you at the hospital."

"I'll go with you," Stiles agreed, and he hastily stuffed his computer back into his backpack. Before I could even begin to argue with him, he was at the front door, walking through it. I sighed and gathered up my things, following after him. I was about to walk out when Scott called for me, and I turned around to face him.

"Do you know how to do this stuff? Contact the benefactor and set up a place for the money to supposedly go?"

I almost smiled, "I've made a wire transfer or two in my life, Scott." His eyebrows shot up and I let out a genuine laugh. "It's how we moved money around for the coven without any outsiders asking questions." He nodded in understanding and I walked outside of his house.

Stiles was sitting in the driver's side of his jeep and he gave me an awkward smile. I rolled my eyes and breezed past his car that was sitting in the driveway and made my way down to my car. I unlocked it and was about to hop in when I heard Stiles open his door.

"We're not taking my jeep?" He asked me, puzzled.

"Your car is blocked by Kira's," I explained and he turned his head to see Kira's car indeed boxing the jeep in. I got in my car without further explanation and started it. Stiles practically ran to the passenger's side, and unfortunately tripped on the curb. He straightened up as if to brush off what just happened and slowly got in the car.

We sat in the car for a minute or so, the tension palpable between us. I was still too upset to want any conversation between us, so I opted for the very mature response of rolling down the windows as I drove off. The wind helped to drown out the silence between us, and it also meant that Stiles would have to yell to be heard. It was a win-win for me.

"So you're not even going to give me a chance to explain myself?" Stiles asked me when we stopped at a red light. I grit my teeth and pulled out my phone. Making sure the bluetooth was connected, I opened Spotify.

"June?" He tried again and I huffed.

"Nope," I replied, and I saw Stiles' face fall a bit. "I'm not really ready to talk to you."

"If you would just hear me out-"

" _Well since my baby left me, Well I found a new place to dwell..."_

"June-" He tried and I just cranked up Elvis even louder.

" _Well it's down on the end of Lonely Street, At Heartbreak Hotel..."_ Thankfully, the light turned green and the wind picked up again. Stiles sat in silence the rest of the car ride.

* * *

"You want to kill Scott?" Argent asked in disbelief.

"We want to lure out the benefactor," I explained, narrowing my eyes at Stiles after his poor explanation, "And by doing so we want to convince everyone around us that Scott is dead. We're not going to kill him."

Argent nodded, "How are you going to do that?"

"Well I would have made a sleeping potion or something that could convince everyone he was dead and do so safely, but we opted to electrocute him and lower his heart rate down to something that is only survivable for an alpha. But that's not the point, the point is we need your help."

"What do you need my help for?"

"Look we know you're busy going after Kate," Stiles reasoned, "But we could really use an extra pair of eyes."

"Plus, Kate might even show up tonight, who knows?" I mentioned, and his tired gaze fell to mine.

"Why would you think that?"

"When we hunted down Kate the last time," I recalled, "She had kidnapped an assassin. She wants to know who the benefactor is as much as we do. What if she or any other kind of supernatural creature on that list catches wind that Undesirable Number One is dead and that the benefactor needs to be present for visual proof?"

"So you don't just need an extra pair of eyes..." He trailed off.

"We need a hunter," Stiles finished, and Argent nodded.

"Okay, where is this taking place?"

"The hospital, we're going to set up a station and watch all the cameras for the benefactor," Stiles further entailed.

Argent crossed his arms and sighed, "I have something that might be able to help speed that up. Give me ten minutes then we'll all go."

"I'm driving," I instructed and Argent nodded, "I don't really like people driving me around."

"I drive you around all the time," Stiles looked at me with a perplexed expression.

"Yeah well, you're different," I mumbled, and his face turned to one of surprise.

* * *

"Okay, Melissa understands that there's only forty-five minutes for Scott," Stiles jogged into the room in the hospital basement Argent and I were currently occupying. I set my alarm on my phone for the same amount of time, then turned back to the computer screen I was using.

I typed in a few more things before it came to a familiar screen, "Okay, it's all set up. Remember this IP address in case the benefactor tries to talk to us down the line. All you have to do is type. You're the 'G' which I'm guessing was for Garrett."

Argent took the computer from me and I watched him type out " _Scott McCall dead. Payment requested._ "

"That's your assassin speak?" Stiles asked dubiously.

Argent turned to face him skeptically, "I said he's dead. What more do you want?"

"Well it was a little dry. You could've said something like, 'Target has been neutralized. The crow flies at midnight.' That's always cool."

Argent turned to me, "You're dating him?" Surprised, my eyes widened a bit and I nodded, scratching the back of my neck. I was saved of any response when the computer beeped. We all peered over to see the benefactor's handle appear with a reply.

" _Visual confirmation is required._ "

Stiles eagerly grabbed for the computer at the same time Argent did. Stiles looked back to him, and he gestured to tell Stiles to go on. I rolled my eyes at my boyfriend as he leaned back over my computer.

"Type this," Argent instructed, "' _Visual confirmation is not possible. Police coming to claim body in forty minutes._ '" Another response came much faster this time around.

" _Visual confirmation is required for payment._ "

Sighing, I looked at Argent, who was very frustrated.

"Type 'Show me the money,'" I suggested before Argent could say anything. Both he and Stiles turned to look at me in annoyance and I blushed, "Sorry, I'm on a Tom Cruise fix."

"Tell him number one on the list is dead. I killed him, and if the wire transfer isn't complete in forty minutes," He grabbed the laptop from Stiles who was frantically typing to keep up with his words. He typed out, " _I'm coming after you_." Before quitting out of the program.

"What now?" I asked him.

"Go grab Kira and Liam, and head to the room Melissa put aside for you," He told the two of us. "I'm going to the roof, I'll call Stiles when it's all set up." He left without so much as a 'good luck.'

I shut my laptop and tucked it under my arm before heading for the basement doors. I heard Stiles shuffling around behind me, and when I glanced back briefly, he was quickly following behind. We shuffled down the dark hallway that led to the elevators before calling one to our floor. When it arrived, we stepped inside, and were once again drowned by the thick tension.

"June-"

"No."

"No, I just need to know," He stated in a way that kept me silent, "I just - I need to know if you're still my girlfriend."

I raised an eyebrow, "What makes you think I wouldn't be?"

I heard Stiles let out a loud scoff, "Oh, I don't know. Maybe it was the not talking to me for two days, the sending all of my calls to voicemail, drowning me out by means of Elvis Presley... I could go on." This elevator ride was obnoxiously long.

"I don't know what you expected, I'm incredibly furious with you." Out of the corner of my eye I saw him open his mouth, but I beat him to it, "But that doesn't mean I don't still love you."

"Then why-" The elevator doors opened to the fourth floor, and I stepped out. Stiles followed closely by my side, "- Why won't you talk to me?"

I turned to him in a sudden flare of anger, "You mean like how you talked to me? Because you're the master of communication in this relationship? It doesn't feel good when you're significant other won't talk to you about important things, does it?" I continued down the halls in search of the room Melissa mentioned that we could use for this entire operation.

"Well, when you put it like that, I mean-"

"Don't you think," I almost felt a twinge of pity as to how much I had interrupted Stiles, "That if I wanted to rethink our relationship, that I would be justified?"

"If you weren't rethinking this relationship, why are you ignoring me? Why aren't you trying to work this out?"

"Because I am too damn frustrated and hurt to want to try right now. You lied to me, kept something as big as my parents' death warrants under my nose, do you have any idea how that feels?" I saw the room up ahead, and advanced towards it rapidly, hoping that this conversation would finish soon.

"June, there's a reason why I-"

"You have experienced my relationship with my parents firsthand, and yet you still kept them from me. That's not something I can just overlook."

I felt Stiles grab my arm and spin me around to face him, "June, _listen to me_. I have a reason why I kept it from you, okay?"

"Enlighten me then," I sneered, impatiently tapping my foot. Stiles rubbed at his nose in an irritated manner before opening his mouth.

"I weighed all the pros and cons of this situation before making the choice to not tell you. I did what I thought you would do in this situation."

"You thought I would lie to and keep secrets from you?"

"No, I thought things through. I - I lost sleep over this stuff wondering what you would do."

"And Malia?"

"What about her?" He seemed genuinely confused.

"The fact that you didn't tell her she's adopted? We're trying to help her."

"Telling her that her real father is in fact a serial killer was not going to help her. He's manipulative, and she's curious. He got off scot-free and does whatever he pleases, including worming his little V-neck-wearing self into her mind."

"And what, corrupt her into his devious ways?" I refuted, and Stiles clamped his jaw shut, "You know as well as I do that while she's still learning things, she's far from misguided. Now she's off doing something that might get Peter involved, which could have been prevented had you told her what she was entitled to know in the first place."

"We thought it was best for-"

"Cut the bullshit, Stilinski," I snapped, "You and Scott were keeping secrets you had no business keeping. Those were matters that you didn't get to decide how they played out, and you did so anyway. My parents, while entirely erroneous and horrible as they are, were my parents for seventeen years. You not telling me that they are marked for death means that I can't protect them. And while I don't want them in my life, I don't want them dead either."

"I just thought you would have to go to New York and help there," Stiles confessed.

"And leave you here, in the midst of everyone around us dying? My parents are entirely capable of taking care of themselves, and wouldn't need me to go defend them," I took his silence as submission, "Yeah, you really thought this through. And you know, you were there to hear it for yourself, invitation or not, I'm not technically allowed back in New York."

"I just didn't want to risk you leaving Beacon Hills after everything that's happened between us," He stated quietly, and my patience vanished entirely.

"That is why I am so upset with you, Stiles," I walked away from him and he followed.

"Why then, June? If it's not the secret-keeping, and it's not your parents, then what is it? Why are you so mad?"

"Because I just got you!" I rounded on him, yelling at him just as he uttered the word 'mad.' I blinked away the frustrated tears and walked into the hospital room where Kira and Liam had no doubt been listening in on our argument since the elevators reached the fourth floor.

I threw my laptop on the bed and proceeded to take a seat in the plush recliner in the opposite corner of the room. Stiles trudged in and started moving things around and plugging in wires to all four computers. As he did so, he pulled out his phone from his jean pocket. Upon closer inspection, I could see the screen was lit up with Argent's name.

"I'm here, you ready?" His voice floated over the speakerphone. "Try it now."

Stiles pressed a few buttons on his computer and watched as all four of the laptops laying on the borrowed hospital bed displayed the security camera feeds of the hospital. I saw his face morph into one of satisfaction as well as Kira's and Liam's. Knowing we were now just waiting, I proceeded to pull out my phone and strike up a game of Bejeweled to pass the time while Stiles and company searched for the benefactor to show up.

When I ran out of moves on my fourth game, I exited the app and checked the timer. Scott had about twenty five minutes left to go, and so far there was nothing suspicious about the hospital. I twiddled my thumbs and glanced around the bland hospital room. When my phone buzzed, I was surprised to see Malia's face staring back at me. Opening up my phone, I saw she had texted me something a tad bit alarming.

 _In the Hale vault with Peter, says he has information on my adoption._

Sighing, I rubbed at my forehead before replying:

 _Just be careful please._

"Is that supposed to look like that?" I glanced up from my conversation to see Liam pointing at something on a laptop. I sat up straighter to hear what was going on better.

"No, no it's not," Stiles confirmed, forehead creased in worry.

"Where is that?" Kira wondered.

"It's the roof, someone's gonna have to go check it out," Stiles replied. I was ready to volunteer to get away from the tension Stiles practically radiated, but Kira beat me to it.

"I'll go," She explained and we all looked to her.

"Uh, this might not just be a malfunction, okay?" I cautioned and she nodded.

"I know, that's why I brought this," She held up her katana for everyone to see, unsheathing it partially. I sat back and nodded in approval, and she headed to the door.

"I'm coming with you," Liam called out, eyes skirting between Stiles and I in a way that reminiscent of a child not wanting to be in between their parents while they were having a fight. Stiles skirted around the bed and to the middle of the room to call out to the pair.

"Okay, and you're both coming right back. Immediately," When he was met with no response, he sighed, "Kids."

He must have realized that we were again the only two in the room, for his gaze fell upon me once more. His eyes shone with hurt and frustration before blinking back into focus.

"What are you still doing here," He questioned me in a tone that was trying to convey casual. He retreated back into the corner with the computers and locked his gaze on them.

"Liam and Kira are capable of taking care of whatever's going on," I informed him, keeping my own stare fixated on my newly-painted nails, as well as pulling at the strands in my braids to make them appear bigger.

"No, I mean, why are you here with me?"

Not glancing up, I replied, "Because the last time you left my sight under these kinds of circumstances, someone nearly put a bullet in your head. I'm not going to let that happen again."

When he turned to look at me, the strangest feeling overcame me, and I imagined it was close to that of what Lydia must feel when a premonition overtakes her. One second, I was in the hospital room, looking at Stiles as he turned to me, the next I was standing in the main hallway at school.

 _I heard a bang echo around me, growing louder and louder each time it rang out. Eventually it grew so loud I almost had to cover my ears, until further down the hallway a locker slammed open. As it opened, out toppled Scott McCall, and my eyes widened._

 _He was quick to get up, as if something at the opposite end of the hallway caught his eye. He traipsed away from me, and I hesitantly followed behind him. I didn't know what was going on, but it felt like impending doom was about to rain down on the high school we were situated in._

 _"Catch," I flinched, but Scott caught the ball that was thrown our way. Peering around Scott's well-built back, I saw Liam standing at the end of the hall, decked out in full lacrosse gear. The lights started flickering as Liam gave a satisfied smile._

 _"That's why you're team captain," He complimented, before jogging down the intersecting hall. Scott paced to the corner and I was quickly behind him as we both watched Liam enter an empty classroom. The lights flickered around us again, and the feeling of something horrible arriving tugged at my gut._

 _"Scott," I whispered in his ear, "Scott, this isn't a good idea."_

 _Scott's head glanced around, his stare going right through me, as if I wasn't there at all to him. He could hear me, but he couldn't see me. He peered down the hallway to where Liam disappeared off to and purposefully headed down it, dropping the lacrosse ball in the process._

 _My boots were silent as I followed behind Scott and Liam. When I rounded the door into the classroom, I saw Scott hunched over the teacher's desk and looking at a laptop. Peeking just a little over his shoulder when I reached him, I saw the computer spit out a list of three names: The Mute, The Orphans, and The Chemist. Scott's name was the name that broke the cipher._

 _"I can't do that, I can't kill them," Scott denied quietly._

 _"Someone has to," I lifted my head up to see Liam on the other side of Scott, all playfulness removed from his features. I sighed and walked to the back of the classroom, pacing anxiously when I saw the lights continue to flicker._

 _"Why me?" I heard Scott ask him._

 _"Because you're the alpha."_

 _"You're not a murderer, Scott," I reminded him. Scott's head twitched in my direction in recognition._

 _"I'm not a murderer," He repeated my words to Liam._

 _"But you are a predator," Liam countered, and I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion as to why Liam wanted everybody dead._

 _"No. We're predators... But w-we don't have to-"_

 _"June!" I whirled around to see Stiles grabbing onto my hand._

 _"Stiles? What - what's going on?"_

 _"June what are you doing? Why are we at the school?"_

 _"I don't know," I responded fearfully, tears gathering in my eyes, "I thought I was supposed to be...?"_

 _"June, we're not even in reality," Stiles explained, "We're at the hospital, remember? We're trying to protect Scott."_

 _My breathing hitched, "But Scott's right there." I turned around to see Scott hunched over the desk and staring at the computer, but that was not what grabbed my attention. Liam was on the floor, and the Mute was standing over him, pulling a tomahawk out of his back._

 _"Scott!" I screeched, and finally, his attention was on me. He could finally see me._

 _"June? What are you-"_

 _"Scott, Scott help me," Liam begged from the floor, and the Mute was now looking at Scott, placing a finger where his mouth should be in a silencing motion. I looked frightfully at the Mute, then at Scott, then back to the Mute. His gaze fell on Stiles, and his arm launched backwards._

 _"No, Stiles!" I shouted, lunging in front of him when I felt a blunt force strike me in my chest. The blow was so strong I fell back into Stiles' arms. Glancing down, I saw the tomahawk lodged in the middle of my chest. My eyes glanced up to Scott's wide ones, and I heard Stiles shout my name before I slipped into a sudden darkness._

* * *

I gasped for air before propelling myself out of the hospital chair I where I was seated. I fell onto my knees, clawing at my chest for either air or confirmation that I had no axe protruding from it. My breaths came out in wheezes as I tried to recall what the hell had just happened. I flinched when I felt Stiles' arms encompass me in an effort to stand me up. I pushed him off of me in fear and scrambled to my feet, backing away from him swiftly.

"How did you do that?" I asked him, still breathing heavily.

"Do what? I should be fucking asking you that? What even was that?" His breathing was just as heavy as mine, and his eyes were wide with worry.

"It's - it's a new thing. I told you, I was developing a new ability. Ginny - Ginny and I think it has to do with my empathy and being in Scott's pack. That's why - that's why I was in your dreams a few months ago. It's like, me being in this pack means I'm also able to be in your guys' heads."

"So you're saying we were in Scott's head? That that is what he's seeing right now?" I nodded hesitantly.

"I have to assume. I mean, I don't know anyone else who's having visions of Scott and Liam and the assassins we've gone up against."

"So you can just slip into our thoughts? Or our subconscious because of your empathetic connection to us? You can do that by will?"

"You think what just happened was done willfully?" I argued, "I don't know how that fucking just happened. I also don't have any idea how you were there. I don't know how that's even possible."

"You started spacing, and muttering under your breath. The lights in this room started flickering on and off, and I had to assume it was because of your magic. You kept saying 'Scott, this isn't a good idea.' You weren't here at all."

"Okay," I responded, "But that doesn't explain how you entered Scott's head with me."

"I grabbed your hands when the lights started flickering in here. The - the next thing I know, we're at school, and you have a tomahawk sticking out of you."

"I don't know how you were there merely by contact. I'll have to ask Ginny about it," I murmured, still recalling vividly how it felt to have an axe thrown at me.

"Maybe it's just between the pack," Stiles suggested, "Like how you can only connect yourself to people in Scott's pack, maybe other people can connect with you who are also in Scott's pack."

I sighed, "I am honestly too exhausted with my magic to want to know at this point," I complained, "I'm just gonna write down what happens and let Ginny do all the work."

Suddenly above us, the lights shut off. Sounds of distress outside the room signaled that this power outage wasn't just isolated, it was the entire hospital. We both heard the loud sound that turned on the back-up generators, flooding the room with an eerie green light. Stiles' eyes landed to me, and I threw up my hands in defense.

"I swear to God, I did not do this," I assured and Stiles glanced back over to the computers that were on the bed. His expression grew tense, and I peered around to see the computer screens myself. All four screens displayed static, except for the one in the middle, counting down that Scott had a mere twenty minutes left.

"You're right," Stiles admitted, "You did not do this."

"The benefactor did," I stated, my stomach twisting in knots for my friend down in the morgue.


	16. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14: Operation: Kill Scott McCall, the Thrilling Conclusion**

I ran a hand through my hair in an effort to wipe away the sweat clinging to my forehead from the events that had just occurred. Sighing, I locked eyes with an equally tense Stiles.

"We can't stay here," I started, "If this really is the benefactor, we should be down in the morgue with Scott." Stiles simply nodded in agreement and went back to the computers. He started closing each of them before shoving them all into a backpack that was nestled in the corner of the room. Stiles then unplugged all the wires that were tangled together and stuffed them into the same bag. He zipped it up in record time and proceeded to usher me out the door.

We hastily walked down the hallways to the staircase. It was particularly easy to escape the attention of the doctor's and nurses, who were currently panicking over the power outage. When we got to the stairwell, it was considerably darker than the reasonably lit hallways, so I opted to pull out my phone's flashlight to light the way for us as we made our descent.

"You know what I don't understand?" Stiles pondered aloud as we passed the second floor, and I sighed.

"The basics of a relationship," I retorted before flinching, "Sorry, off task."

"No, that's kind of what I'm not understanding," Stiles murmured. We didn't need to talk terribly loud, as the acoustics in the stairwell were off the charts. Stiles' voice echoed even if he was talking quietly. "I don't get why you offered to help us if you're so mad at me."

I paused in my stride, and felt Stiles nearly stumble in an effort to not collide with me. "I may be furious beyond belief with you, but I'm not about to let that impede on our attempts at saving everybody. The last time I did that Boyd died, remember?"

There was a quiet while we kept walking until he spoke up again, "I mean romantic feelings. I'm distracted by you all the time, how come you never seem to be distracted by me, fighting or not?"

I almost smiled at his comment, "Stiles you're always distracted by something, are you sure you're distracted by me?"

Going along with the banter, he replied, "Nope, pretty sure you're a different kind of distraction."

I frowned when I thought about it, "Distracted by you, mad at you, what I do to help the pack directly affects you and my friends. I'm not the kind of girl who's going to put her feelings and relationship over certain things like the supernatural."

"So even if we were getting along, you'd sideline me?" I let out a genuine laugh at his remark and opened the door to the well lit basement. Stuffing my phone away, I read the signs that directed hospital employees to the morgue.

"You're not getting what I'm saying," I insisted, "I just mean, my relationship with you is extremely important to me, but I'm not going to let it consume my every waking thought. I have stuff to do, you know? I would expect you to feel the same way."

We walked into the morgue and I froze just out of reach of the swinging doors that separated us from the outside. There Scott was, lying seemingly dead as a doornail on a slab that was meant for cadavers, not for my friends. His hispanic complexion had dulled into a truly horrifying pallor, and his chest did not rise and fall in a comforting manner. I wouldn't admit it, but I was thankful when Stiles laced his fingers through my own and squeezed gently. He guided me forward into the room and set his stuff down.

Not wanting to see Scott in that position any longer than I had to, I spoke to Stiles. "We need to find Argent, he should be down here with us."

Stiles agreed and we walked outside of the morgue and down the main hall back to the stairs. He pulled out his phone and scrolled through his contacts while I noticed a figure clad in black leather just straight ahead. Walking slightly faster, I rounded the corner only to have Chris Argent himself whirl around, brandishing a gun directly in my face.

On instinct, when I felt Stiles collide with my back, I shoved him behind me. In the several seconds it took for me to regain my composure, Argent lowered his weapon. Stiles skirted around me and I could see on his face that he recalled the very similar incident that happened merely two days prior.

"The power's out in the whole building, we lost all the cameras," Stiles informed Argent in a shaky voice.

Argent nodded and glanced down the hallway we just arrived from. "Stay with Scott," he instructed, eyes wide and alert. "Text me if you see or hear anything." He hastily checked his watch and we all glanced at the eighteen minutes staring us in the face. Argent, Stiles, and I all shared the same dreadful gaze before Argent turned and left to go find the source of whatever was causing the blackout.

Much to our satisfaction and dismay, Scott was in the very same place where we left him, which was believably dead. I leaned against a table that contained medical tools and drawers of medicine while Stiles took to pacing the floor. The whole scene reminded me of Mexico sans Malia and I sighed.

"I wish I could do more," I admitted and Stiles stopped pacing to look at me.

"I'm sorry, are you talking to me?"

"Who else would I be talking to? The only other visible person in this room is next to dead."

"I thought you were mad at me, that's all," He confessed.

"Don't make me regret venting to you," I grumbled and Stiles straightened up.

"No, no, sorry - uh - what do you mean do more? You're a witch, you do plenty."

"I don't know how to stop the berserkers, I've nearly died coming up against them every time. What if that's what Kira and Liam are facing on the roof? I'd have no way of helping them," I resided to curling into myself and fiddling with my hands when I heard Stiles sigh.

"You'll figure it out, June. You always figure stuff out without a problem. Like how you helped me the other day with expanding and simplifying trigonometric functions, how you figured out how Malia studies best-"

"That's academic, Stiles. I've known that stuff for years. I mean figuring out stuff like who the darach is, or how to get a nogitsune out of your fucking mind, or how to stop a berserker. Or how to catch a benefactor, or crack a code that lists all of our names, or who is assassinating people. I can never figure that stuff out, it's always you figuring that out. What you solve matters, Stiles. It impacts people's lives and affects entire towns, I just figure stuff out that people who came way before me already know. I just - I mean I can't even figure out how to deal with my magic. This new ability is wigging me out big time. Is it the Sight? Is it empathy? Is it just plain fucking weird? I don't even know."

"Hey, math matters, alright? It's good for tipping at restaurants and a few other things," Stiles cracked and I cast a weary glance his direction. He sighed and leaned against the table next to me. "June, I don't know how to say this to get it through your head, but you matter. What you do matters. I didn't figure out how to find the nemeton and my dad until you and the magic you insist is so weird performed that ritual. Scott and I wouldn't have been able to get the nogitsune to split from me had it not been for your idea to get Scott to roar. I probably wouldn't be alive had you not knocked Scott and I out of that puddle of gasoline."

"Still kind of mad at you for that last one," I muttered, "That was incredibly stupid."

"So was you casting a shield around me and not you when I crashed the jeep," Stiles retorted and I smirked to myself. I shoved the blonde strands of hair out of my face and sighed. Promptly, I stood up and resumed Stiles' previous position of pacing the floor. Keeping my eyes off of the two boys for as long as I could, I finally peeked over to Scott's lifeless form, I immediately regretted doing so, for one more, I found myself not looking at Scott in a morgue, but I looked at Scott in one of the hallways of Beacon Hills High School.

 _Scott stood up from the floor next to the open locker and turned to look at me. Well I suppose he looked right through me before turning and facing the empty hall. He and I started walking down it in a slow manner before Liam appeared at the end._

 _"Catch," He called, before throwing a lacrosse ball with incredible speed and precision. I flinched, for it would've hit me square in the face had Scott not caught it. My eyes widened when I saw Scott examining the ball in his hands, and how he was holding it with his claws._

 _"That's why you're the alpha," Liam commended._

"June!" I shook my head clear of Scott and Liam to find Stiles standing right next to me and I spun to face him. His gaze was full of concern and I glanced down at my trembling hands.

"It's the same thing," I confessed, "I keep seeing Scott and Liam at school. I don't - I don't-"

"I'm going to call Argent," Stiles' stare never leaving me. I nodded at him while I clenched my fists before turning around to push Scott's "body" into the cold chamber and shutting the door. I pulled my phone out of my pocket and checked the time, my throat constricting when I saw that we had a mere six minutes to wake Scott back up, and Kira and Liam were nowhere to be seen.

"C'mon, c'mon," Stiles implored under his breath, frantically racing a hand through his hair, "Answer the phone. Answer the phone, Argent, c'mon." Several rings ensued and Stiles lost any patience he once possessed, "Come on, Argent. Answer the phone. Why are you not answering the phone?"

Amazingly on cue, Argent flew threw the doors and landed on his back, groaning. Stiles and I both rushed forward, but he waved the two of us back.

"Ugh, I was right," He boomed, glancing up at the two of us, "Stiles, June, get out of here." Directly behind Argent walked in a perfectly calm and at ease Kate Argent. Had it not been for who she was and the situation we were in, I was nearly tempted to ask how she kept her hair so perfect for someone who was constantly on the run. Peeking over at Stiles, I saw his eyes widen with fear and concern for his best friend lying on a slab in the locker next to him. Instinctively, I cast a shield around the both of us, and Kate cocked her head.

"June Child," She cooed mockingly and I tensed, "The witch. Are you supposed to be my niece's replacement or something?" I stiffened in anger and my nostrils flared.

"If Allison were here," I warned through gritted teeth, "Who do you think she would be standing by?"

Kate's eyes narrowed fractionally before her gaze went over to the door hiding Scott behind Stiles and myself. I felt a twist in my gut when Kate's face was replaced with Scott's back as he looked at himself in the mirror.

 _He was staring fixedly on his fangs, and I could see a hint of worry in his eyes._

 _"There's something different, isn't there," Liam questioned, and without taking his eyes off of the mirror, Scott acknowledged him._

 _"I've got more fangs," He answered, tilting his head in different directions as he opened and closed his mouth again and again._

Argent bumped shoulders with me, and my stare was once again back on Kate Argent. It hadn't escaped my attention that my shield had vanished while I was in Scott's mind. My breathing hitched and I squared my shoulders, ready to protect Argent and Stiles at a moment's notice.

"Look's like you've got a bit of a malfunction going on there," Kate teased and I huffed. She turned her stare to Stiles and my vision started turning red with anger, "Get out of the way, Stiles. I'm taking the body."

"Why?" His tone was shaky but his expression only showed how determined he was to protect Scott, "Visual confirmation?"

Kate's face remained impassive before she broke out into a smirk. She slowly stepped forward to the three of us. "Don't worry, handsome. I'm not the benefactor."

"Then what do you want with the body?" Argent interrogated, and Kate didn't even flinch.

"I wish I could tell you," She antagonized, and Argent moved forward. Kate grabbed his arm with a clawed hand while Argent tucked a gun under her chin. In that moment, my vision went white, and a searing pain made me clutch at my head. When I looked up, I wasn't in the morgue, I was once again with Scott and Liam in the school locker room.

 _"Maybe it's part of being an alpha," Liam suggested as Scott still examined his fangs. "Like you're becoming more of a werewolf."_

 _"Or more of a monster," Scott pondered, and I could hear the concern in his tone._

 _"What if it makes you stronger? What if it's like you're growing?" As Liam's puzzling question was brought to light, I felt an arm go around my neck and I gasped. The other arm belonging to the person who was currently choking me threw an tomahawk at Liam's back. Had I been able to call out to Liam, I would have, had it not for my attacker cutting off any air supply. He slowly brought his hand to the arm that was suffocating me and typed on the wearable keyboard I hadn't seen before._

 _"Evolving," An automated voice called out and Scott turned around. He first saw Liam with an axe protruding from his back once more before looking up to me. His eyes widened as he saw me once again. I was losing the ability to focus, for I couldn't breathe. I did notice one of the hands holding me go up to their face before I felt him position both hands strategically on my neck and chin. Before Scott could even move, I felt my head whip to the side with a ferocity I didn't know was possible. At the same time, I heard a sickening crunch, and my sight vanished to black._

I felt Stiles' arms around me as my knees gave out. Steadying me, he stood me up as I looked over at him. Concern and fear were written across his face as he silently motioned to his nose. I mirrored his actions and felt a hot liquid residing there. It didn't take much guessing to know it was blood.

"I always forget you carry two," Kate teased, and I turned back to the two siblings.

"Back off," Argent barked.

"You sure you can pull that trigger fast enough?" Kate cautioned, and Argent readjusted in her grip.

"I don't want to," He admitted earnestly, and I could tell she was playing on that.

"You're not going to kill me," She proclaimed with such resonance that I half believed could have woken up Scott had she applied herself.

"I'm not gonna let you take his body," Argent snapped through clenched teeth.

"Okay well obviously you guys have a lot to talk about, so, maybe I saw some coffee, a vending machine outside," Stiles tried to diffuse the tension and get them both to leave the room. I looked over at him, and didn't even have time to reprimand him before Chris drew Kate's attention back over to him.

"Listen to me, Kate," His tone was calmer, but still urgent, "We have a plan."

"And if killing Scott was part of it, you're worse than me," She argued, and I honestly couldn't see where she was wrong in that sense.

"He's telling the truth, we're trying to get to the benefactor," I explained while wiping my nose clean with the back of my hand.

"If you didn't notice, you're on that list too," Argent tried to remind her, "And worth more than most." Kate finally let her façade slip and the anger seeped to the surface.

"That's why I'm here," She snarled, and Argent tensed up more than I thought was possible.

"Then back off and let us do what we planned," He roared, and Kate's mouth shut. She glanced over to Argent's arm that I noticed had the watch on it. I pulled out my own phone hastily to see that we had just three minutes left to save Scott.

"Take the berserkers, and go. Kate, please," He instructed in a much quieter voice. "We have a plan. Both siblings were panting by the time Kate let go of Argent and vice versa. She glanced over at both Stiles and myself before striding out of the swinging doors. I let out a breath that I didn't know I was holding when a minute and a half later, Kira came running into the morgue.

Hastily, Stiles cranked open the door and with my help pulled the slab holding Scott out for Kira to work her magic. I was directly above Scott's head with Kira on my left, Stiles and Argent on my right. I looked at Scott's pale form but was briefly overcome with panic when his eyes opened to reveal red, and his face actually was covered in blood. He locked eyes with me and smiled in a way that I pictured a serial killer to smile right before he killed another victim. It truly terrified me until I heard the yelling.

I was snapped out of my reverie when Scott screamed himself awake. He quickly gasped for air, and with wide eyes gazed around to everybody as we all let relief wash over us. Kira was quick to grab Scott's head and kiss him gently, ecstatic to see him okay.

"What happened?" He asked her, eyes still wide, "Did it work?"

Kira looked up at the three of us, and Scott followed her gaze. No one could say anything before Liam came bursting through the doors. We all turned to see him with a frantic expression as his stare fell on Kira.

"What?" She asked him.

"It's your mother," He admitted quietly, "She's hurt." Kira turned to look at us then look at Scott once more. Scott nodded frantically, and Kira took that as her cue to leave. She sprinted past Liam out the very same doors he entered through.

Scott grunted as he attempted to sit up on the slab. Along with the help of Argent, I got Scott into a sitting position and the sheet covering him fell down to a rather revealing area.

"Okay, before I see more of you than I want to, I'm going to go and get someone who can help," I said, and quickly exited the room. I walked down a hall to the elevators when I pressed the button. The lights flickering overhead reminded me that the power was still iffy, so I headed for the still dark stairs. I arrived to the ground floor and felt my phone buzz in my pocket. Still looking for a doctor or hospital official, I answered without first looking to see who it was.

"Hello?"

"June?"

I stopped in my tracks, "Malia? Are you okay? What's going on?"

I heard her pause before she sighed, "I'm fine. I'm at the school, can you please come get me?"

"I'll be there in twenty," I assured her before quickly hanging up on her. I was about to leave when a doctor brushed my shoulder has he walked by.

"Excuse me," I called out and he turned around, his coat swooshing behind him. I noticed he had blood on his knees and hands as well as the seams of his coat. His name tag read Dr. Geyer, and I recognized him as Liam's step-father.

"Dr. Geyer-"

"I'm sorry, miss, but I'm afraid I need to tend to other patients."

"It's my friend, Scott McCall," I told him and his shoulders sagged in pity.

"I'm very sorry about that, I wish we could've done more. His poor mother works here and all-"

"That's not it," I interrupted, "I was down in the morgue, we were paying our respects, when he just sat up." I almost smiled when his eyebrows furrowed in skepticism. "I think I'm going to have nightmares for a week, but he literally just sat up. He was talking to my boyfriend when I went to find a doctor."

"Are you sure you saw him sit-" His eyes glanced down the hall I came from and widened in surprise. I turned around to see Scott clad in sweatpants hobbling along with the help of Stiles and Argent. Dr. Geyer rushed past me to Scott and escorted him down the hall no doubt in search of Melissa. Stiles and Argent stopped next to me, and I turned to Chris.

"Thank you for coming with us," I told him and he nodded. "I have to get going, can you find a ride?"

"I'm sure I'll do just fine," He mentioned before walking down another hallway. I turned to Stiles, who was fidgeting with his hands.

"The same goes for you, I think Melissa will give you a ride home," I assured him before turning around.

"What - June, I-"

"I need to go pick up Malia," I turned to face him, and he couldn't meet my gaze. "She needs me more than you do right now." I left the hospital as quickly as I could, finding my car and pulling out of the parking lot en route to the high school.

I found Malia sitting atop the school's sign, which doubled as the door to the Hale vault and sighed. I knew that whatever she was going to tell me was not going to be something positive. Just by looking at her face, I could tell that she found something she didn't like the sound of.

"Where to?" I asked her when we got into the car, "I'll understand if you don't want to go home, you could spend the night at my place-"

"I want to go to Stiles' house," She said, taking me off guard, "I need to see the whole board, I think." I nodded silently and made my way to the Stilinski household.

"Did you find anything worth sharing?"

"Do you know anything about the Desert Wolf?" She asked me and I pursed my lips.

"Um, I know the name is like a nickname for coyote, does it mean something else?"

"My mother," Malia muttered to herself, "My real mother goes by the name Desert Wolf."

"She goes by a codename? Why would she-?" I thought about it for a second before glancing at Malia's crestfallen expression. "Oh, Malia. I don't-"

"I think I need to find her," Malia cut me off once again, blinking tears out of her eyes. "I need to know that I'm not like her. I need to ask her why she gave me up."

"Malia I can already tell you you're not a killer, okay? What makes you think that you are?"

"Because both of my birth parents are apparently psychotic killers, so why not me?" I pulled up to the Stilinski household, and turned off the car.

"Malia-"

"I just need a few minutes alone, I think," She told me, and I nodded in understanding. I glanced over to see the police cruiser parked in the driveway, and I sighed.

"I need to talk to the Sheriff anyway. Let me know when you're ready to go, okay?" We both climbed out of the car and walked up the drive. I tentatively knocked on the door, and Stilinski opened the door with a confused look on his face.

"June? Malia? Is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine," I assured him, "Malia just wanted to go over some stuff relating to the dead pool."

The sheriff nodded, "And you? Stiles isn't here, I thought you were with him."

"Actually, I'm here to talk to you," My words seemed to take him off guard as his eyebrows rose on his forehead.

"Why don't you girls come on in," He opened the door wider and we both stepped in. Malia made a beeline for Stiles' room and I stayed behind with the sheriff.

"Are you alright, June? Is this about Stiles?"

"Kind of, but more so about you."

"By all means, enlighten me."

"Can we sit down?" I asked, "I'd feel better if we were sitting down before I talked to you about this."

"I'm starting to get nervous here, June. Did something happen? Are you...?" He trailed off and glimpsed down at my stomach. I almost had to laugh.

"Christ in heaven, no, Sheriff. I'm way smarter than that." I could see the tension leave his shoulders as he escorted me to the kitchen table. We sat down and I started twiddling with my thumbs while gazing at all the police case strewn across the table.

"You're almost as fidgety as my son."

"I guess I should probably say why I'm here."

"That would be nice, yes."

I breathed in deeply, "I know it's not my place to be meddling in anybody's business regarding certain aspects of their lives. I especially know it's incredibly bad manners to involve myself in matters that have a financial aspect, it's terrible form really-"

"What are you saying here, June?"

"I want to help you. I want to help alleviate some of the financial stress you're under," The sheriff leaned back in his chair and pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation.

"Did Stiles tell you about all the MRI and Eichen stuff?"

"More like he mentioned it in passing," I explained and the sheriff scoffed. I think I heard him mutter "unbelievable" under his breath, but I wasn't too sure.

"Look, Mister Stilinski, I'm not trying to throw around money for the sake of showing everyone that I have it, I genuinely just want to help the ones that I care about."

"June, this has absolutely nothing to do with you. It has nothing to do with my son, either, okay? I just - no."

"Sir, if you let me explain-"

"June, I appreciate what you're trying to do here, but it isn't necessary. We're going to be just fine, help or no help."

"Sheriff, you know I'm way too smart to believe that."

He pause for a moment, sizing me up. "Alright, true as that may be, I'm still not letting you help. I'm not a charity case."

"No, you're the sheriff of a town filled to the brim with things that the outside world could not possibly begin to even accept. Your plate is full, and adding something as silly as a debt is trivial to me and frankly ridiculous."

"It's a normal thing for people to struggle financially, June," He lectured me, "I understand that you come from a background where that was never going to be your reality, but it's everyone else's. You need to accept that you can't help them all."

"I'm not trying to help them all, I'm trying to help you," I argued. "And I'm not asking to pay away your debts, I'm asking you to let me make it more manageable. You have enough going on with Beacon Hills, Peter Hale walking around, a dead pool, assassins flooding in from everywhere. Let me take your mind off of something."

"Why me? Why not Melissa?" My gaze flashed down to my thumbs and I heard the sheriff let out a noise of disbelief. "Oh, Jesus. You went to Melissa too?"

"Yes."

"And?"

"She doesn't have to worry about her house anymore," I mumbled and Stilinski's hands went to his hair.

"Why did she say yes?"

"I may have told her you said yes," I flinched when Stilinski's face turned red.

"Why, June? Why are you doing this?"

"Because I have to help somehow," I felt mousy under his gaze. Like I was in trouble, "I don't know how to help make this better. These past few days I have felt more like an outsider than ever before, and I need to know that I can still make something better than I left it. But this isn't even about me, Sheriff.

"You shouldn't be worrying about how to pay for a trip to a mental institution because your son was possessed by a demon, nor should you be worrying about werewolf attacks, but you are. You should be worrying about what you're going to do when Stiles goes to college, or what you're going to do when you retire from police work, _if_ you retire at all," He smiled, "I want you to feel normal. I owe you that much."

"You don't owe me anything, June."

"I can't even begin to explain what you did for me by letting me stay here. It makes all the difference in my life, just please, please let me make a difference in yours."

Sheriff Stilinski stared at me for a moment before getting up and heading to the kitchen. He came back holding two envelopes. He showed them to me before placing them behind his back. I heard the papers shuffling as he switched them in his hands. When it came to a stop, his eyebrows raised, signaling for me to pick an arm. I picked the left, and he held out an envelope to me. I eagerly reached out to grab it, but his didn't let go so easily."

"This will never happen again, you hear me?" I nodded fervently and he released the envelope. I saw in the top left corner the address for Beacon Hills Memorial Hospital, and the word "Final" stamped across it. I folded it in half and tucked it in my pocket.

"I would really appreciate it if you didn't tell Stiles what I did," I explained and the Sheriff nodded at me. "Also, can I use your restroom?"

"You know where it is," He waved me off and I headed down the hall to the familiar bathroom. I glanced around my surroundings with a sting of nostalgia before using the toilet. I washed my hands afterwards and also splashed some water on my face. Tonight was an exceptionally long night, the remnants of my nosebleed were proof enough. I heard a figure brush by the bathroom, and I opened the door to hear voices in Stiles' room.

"That night I cause the car crash," Malia started.

"You mean that night you were out of control on the full moon?" Stiles corrected.

"There's a part I didn't tell you about," I stopped in the doorway to see Malia grabbing a piece of tape off of the murder board I bought for Stiles. "Right before we got in the car, my mother - my adoptive mother, I guess - we got into a huge fight. I don't even remember what it was about, but I remember what I said."

"Malia-"

"I said 'I wish you were all dead.'"

"Killing doesn't run in a family," Stiles reminded her, and I couldn't help but agree.

"Maybe it does in mine," She turned around and taped the last of the dead pool onto the murder board before leaving the room.

She breezed past me and I called out to her, "I'll meet you in the car, okay?" She didn't acknowledge me, and I turned back to Stiles. I slowly walked in and approached the murder board, grabbing a dry erase marker.

"No more lies, to any of us, alright?" I explained as I wrote "The Desert Wolf" in the corner of board. I turned around to face him, and he nodded at me. "I'm done with the lying." I turned to leave when he caught me off guard.

"Why did you say you were mad at me again?"

"Because I just got you," I turned around to answer him.

"I don't get what that means," He was asking me, and I could see it in his eyes.

Licking my chapped lips, I stepped closer to him, "Stiles, I really, really like being with you. I like being here in Beacon Hills with all my friends. If my parents were to die, and I could've prevented it had I known what you kept from me? I don't really think I could look at anyone who knew and still consider them my friends." I walked back to the doorway.

"June, please, please don't go."

"I need to go talk with Malia," I started, cursing the tears falling from my eyes, "And I need time away from you, okay?"

"I can't just let you go like this."

"You hurt me, Stiles. Plain and simple, you hurt me. And I'm not ready to try and forgive you for it."

Stiles' shoulders sagged when I turned to leave his room. I was just as quick as Malia was to get out of the house, I barely even said a proper goodbye to the sheriff. Malia was thankfully leaning next to my car, and I heard her sniffling.

"Malia?"

"Can I spend the night at your house?" She asked me and I smiled.

"Yeah, I know just the thing to cheer you up."

"What?"

"I'm about to show you the world of Tom Cruise. You're life is about to change."


	17. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15: Bonfire Worthy of Guy Fawkes**

It had been about four days since that night at the hospital, and four days since I really talked to any of my friends. Well, save for Malia, who I was tutoring every night. We both were in that mindset to just throw ourselves into our schoolwork in between assassins rather than hearing our friends continually try and explain themselves.

I was keeping up with Lydia. Damn her, I could never seem to stay angry at her for very long. I think that that's due to the fact that she would never let me stay angry at her for more than what she deemed appropriate. Since we started talking again, she would help me steer clear of Stiles in the hallways and in classes we shared.

Scott, true to his word upon my request, kept me in the loop in regards to what was happening. He talked with Kira about how the plan didn't work but also did. Scott thinks that because the benefactor didn't show up means that they don't need to be present to determine if a body is actually dead, meaning only one thing: banshee.

Speaking of Kira, she left for Palo Alto with her father so she could keep an eye on her injured mother. She assured all of us she would be back to Beacon Hills to help as quickly as possible. Pulling me aside, she apologized profusely about the dead pool before giving me a large hug goodbye.

I wasn't the only one removed. Liam had withdrawn himself from all of us almost entirely. When I passed him in the hallways, he would always seem either skittish like something was chasing him or just plain traumatized. The little I heard from Lydia about him was that the fight with the berserkers scared him more than he would want to admit to any of us, Scott included. Poor Mason was even more at a loss as to what was going on with him than usual, but he stayed resiliently by his side. I had to admire his determination and loyalty, and wondered if we were ever going to let him in on what was actually going on in this town.

Lastly, I had indeed avoided Stiles almost like the plague. I screened his calls and his texts, but never blocked his number. It was hard for me to admit it, but I wasn't angry anymore. My heart was instead filled to the brim with hurt, and I wasn't ready to talk to him about it. In my sadness, I turned to Ginny, who was always ready to talk, mugs of ice cream in hand.

"Why won't you answer him?" Ginny inquired, setting down the second mug with her half-finished second helping. My phone had just flashed with another text message from Stiles, and I sighed.

"I mean, I'm not angry anymore, Ginny. I'm just upset, I guess," I set down the mug next to hers, and she leaned across the counter to me.

"Tell me what's on your mind, June. I can't read it, I can't get inside it like you apparently can." I had explained the whole situation with Scott in the hospital, and Stiles' theory about it being a pack thing. Ginny seemed to whole-heartedly agree, and moved that to our lead theory with my new ability.

I huffed, "I just got him, you know? I thought we were past all the secrets and were finally in a place to just be together. Now he goes and keeps a secret from me that could very potentially rip us apart if something were to happen to my parents. Not to mention that he did exactly what they did. Evelyn and Robert kept a huge secret from me by discussing my expulsion from the coven. And Stiles doing the same thing by keeping the lives of my parents away from me and in his control is just sending back all the same feelings over again. I feel like the only person I can turn to is you, Gin."

"Well if you're finally going to listen to me, I can tell you honestly that Stiles did not do that with malicious intent. Your parents did, and I think if you let Stiles explain himself, you'd understand where he was coming from."

"Did he make you say that in attempt to sway me?" I semi-joked, but froze when Ginny didn't reply. Looking up at her, I watched her shift uncomfortably, never meeting my gaze. "He did fucking not," I scoffed.

"He came over one day while you were with Malia," Ginny reasoned in a high-pitched tone. "He wanted a woman's advice on what was wrong with you."

"I feel oddly betrayed for some reason," I muttered, shaking my head in disbelief.

"Oh please, it has nothing to do with betrayal and loyalty, June. He just wanted to talk, so I let him. He really thought that he was going to lose you, and that this was the only way-"

"Can we not talk about this anymore, please? I honestly thought you were on my side," I chided, crossing my arms. Ginny and I both glanced up when the doorbell rang, and she excused herself from the kitchen.

"If you can believe it or not, I actually am playing for your side," She kissed my forehead and walked to the door. She called out to me, relaying that Lydia was at my doorstep. I put on my shoes and walked over to where Ginny was standing. Facing the outside, my eyes widened and then narrowed in suspicion when both Lydia and Stiles were standing on the other side.

"Why do I get the feeling that you're about to take me to my intervention, or something?" I asked hesitantly before Lydia handed me a slip of paper. Unfolding the older-looking paper, I saw what appeared to be another code in unfamiliar handwriting.

"Is this more of the dead pool or something?"

"It was in the lake house," Lydia explained, and my gaze snapped to her, "My grandmother asked to have that given to me before she died. Or, well, disappeared."

"Lydia, you told me your grandmother died in Eichen," I recalled, looking between her and Stiles.

"If she were dead, then how would she have known about the dead pool?" Stiles rhetorically asked.

I shook my head, "What do you need me to do, then?"

"We're heading down to the station to talk to my dad about this before we try and put it on the computer. Lydia's grandmother potentially fits the M.O. of the benefactor, we just need help finding her."

"And you want me to come with you?"

"You said you wanted to be more involved," Lydia reminded me and I sighed. Looking back at Ginny, she nodded.

"Just don't forget to come back and brew up another batch of healing potions, I think we can work on a stronger concoction this time. Lord knows you might need it for the bonfire tomorrow," she instructed and I nodded, breezing past her and to the jeep that was parked on my driveway. I climbed in the backseat while Lydia and Stiles both hopped in, buckling up and sighing. We headed to the sheriff's station blanketed in a tense silence, coupled with Stiles' frequent glances in the rearview mirror.

* * *

It wasn't difficult to find the sheriff in the nearly empty police station. He was quick to spot Stiles and the rest of us before moseying on over to where we stood. Sheriff Stilinski didn't even ask us what was going on, he simply crossed his arms over his chest and raised an eyebrow, waiting for us to explain.

"Uh - someone may have come back from the dead again," I started and I saw the sheriff's eye twitch. He beckoned us forward with the flick of his pointer finger, and headed towards his office.

"It's my grandmother," Lydia continued, "Lorraine Martin. And I'm starting to think she was never dead in the first place."

"It's not just that she could be alive," Stiles explained while his dad held the door open for us.

"It's that she would've had to fake her death."

"Your grandmother, Lorraine Martin, faked her death?" Stilinski asked dubiously.

"Definitely," Stiles answered.

"Maybe," I corrected, glancing over at him.

"More than likely, yes," He argued and I shut my eyes in frustration.

"Oh, I'm guessing you have a story to back this up?"

"She might be helping the benefactor," Lydia informed him.

"Or actually is the benefactor," I piped in, thinking back to what Scott had said about the benefactor potentially being a banshee.

"Sounds like a story worth hearing," The sheriff agreed, closing the door to the office to give us privacy.

"I was up at the lake house a few days ago with my mother when she explained to me that Meredith Walker had been up there at my grandmother's request," Lydia launched into the story, "She also requested that I scatter her ashes in the boat house, but the ashes weren't ashes. It was mountain ash, and the entire building was made of mountain ash."

"Which matters why?" The sheriff inquired.

"If it was just mountain ash, where were the ashes of Lorraine?" I asked and the sheriff nodded in understanding. Lydia held out the sheet of paper with the handwritten code and presented it to the sheriff.

"My mother also said that my grandmother wrote that down while in Eichen. It's the same code we used to find the dead pool." The sheriff looked up at us in confusion and suspicion.

"Once we figure out who's on the list, we want to run the names to see if we can figure out how to find them."

"I can get Parrish to do that, if he ever shows up," The sheriff walked to his office door and opened it, "He's late for his shift. Anybody seen Parrish?" He directed the last question to the deputies in the room. "Haigh?"

Through the blinds over the window, I could see Parrish's partner look up, "Haven't seen him."

Stilinski sighed and shut the door, "If Parrish doesn't turn up, and you figure it out, I can look up the names for you guys."

"What do we do after that?" Stiles questioned, "I mean, how do we put out an APB on someone who is supposed to be dead?"

"We'll figure that out when we get there," The sheriff started saying something else, but my gaze was fixed on Haigh outside of the office. He was wrestling with someone who either had the darkest skin color I'd ever seen or was covered in ash of some sort. What frightened me more was the gun flailing between the two of them pointed in the direction of the office. More specifically: Stiles.

"Move!" I yelled, grabbing fistfuls of Stiles' baseball tee shirt and yanking him into what I deemed a safer zone of the office right as the first gunshot went off. Lydia, Stiles, and I all ducked to the floor, and by the time my knees scraped the linoleum, I had a shield working around all three of us. I glanced up to see the sheriff remove his gun from his belt and open the door.

"Hey! Hey!" The sheriff yelled at the two men I could see on the floor. Another gunshot went off, as well as a shriek of fear from Lydia. The sheriff clutched his shoulder and fell to the floor when I wriggled out of Stiles' grasp. I could feel him claw at my jacket feebly while calling out my name in desperation. Tearing off my jacket, I crumpled it up and placed it gently on the Sheriff's shoulder.

"Put pressure on it, you hear me?" I said and he nodded. I stepped over the threshold, keeping a shield over the doorway to protect those inside before keeping my gaze on who I recognized to be Parrish covered in soot beating the life out of Haigh.

I kicked the gun that was laying next to Haigh out of the way of the two men before reaching for Parrish's shoulder. I quickly rescinded my hands after touching his boiling hot skin. I then placed a shield over my hands before hurling Parrish off of Haigh with all my might. The deputy on the floor groaned in pain while Parrish eagerly tried to crawl back to him. I fell to my knees in front of him while I called out his name.

"Deputy!" I roared, and I saw his eyes clear of their anger when they landed on me. He glanced from me to Haigh to the sheriff and leaned back panting.

"You're supposed to be dead," Haigh moaned, and I looked up to his desk that contained an open laptop he had been previously staring at. Walking over to it, my eyes widened when I saw the familiar screen open for a wire transfer. Haigh had his handle, with the words "Inquiring about wire transfer," and a reply from the benefactor's handle "Kill not confirmed." I beckoned to one of the other two deputies and pointed at Haigh.

"Handcuff him," I instructed, and the man's eyes widened.

"Handcuff _him_?"

"Yes, dumbass, he tried to kill Parrish," I glanced over to Stiles tending to his injured father, "And Jesus, can somebody call for an ambulance?" I rushed back over to Stiles and the sheriff, slowly removing the jacket I had him press to the wound. Stiles watched me as I examined his father's shoulder.

"Wh-what's wrong, is he - is he gonna be okay?"

"It's nearly a clean shot," I explained.

"Nearly? What does that mean nearly?"

"It means it didn't exit the shoulder. See how there's no blood splatter?" I gestured to behind the sheriff and indeed there was no blood. "It didn't hit anything major, had it left the shoulder, it would've been a clean through-and-through."

"Can you get it to stop hurting like a bitch?" The sheriff complained and I smiled a bit.

"No, I can't, but I think I can get the bullet out, save you the money of a small surgery," I glanced between the two of them, and they looked at each other. They both nodded after sharing a silent conversation and looked back to me. Nodding myself, I looked around for anything the sheriff might need.

"Stiles, can you give me your belt please?" Without question, he took off his belt and handed it to me. I quickly folded it in half, and held it in front of the sheriff's face. "Sheriff, this is going to be extremely painful, alright? You're gonna want to bite down on it." He acknowledged that he understood by taking the belt by his mouth and waiting for me. I glanced around the room again and looked to Lydia.

"Lydia, the flashlight on the desk, bring it to me, please." Lydia was quick to look up at the desk and toss me the flashlight she grabbed. I turned it on and shined it on the wound, locating the bullet and its path into his shoulder.

"Okay, Stiles, hold his other hand," I glanced up at the sheriff, "You ready?" He quickly nodded and my gaze fell to the bullet once more. I focused all my energy on telekinetically moving the bullet along the path it had taken in his shoulder. I tried my best to go as quickly as possible, but it proved difficult when the sheriff was groaning in pain. After about a minute, the bullet hopped out of Stilinski's shoulder and into the palm of my hand. Stilinski started breathing heavily through his nostrils in relief, and let go of Stiles' now purple fingers.

"You did great," I smiled at him, just in time as I heard the wails of ambulance sirens.

"How did you do that?" I glanced up to see a still charred Parrish looking at my still open hand containing the bloody bullet. Before any of us could move, the paramedics walked in, assessing the sheriff for themselves. With such commotion around, I quickly handed an EMT the bullet I had been holding, and looked to Stiles. He seemed to still be in panic-mode as they brought in a gurney as they lifted the sheriff up. Stiles was still glancing between Parrish and his dad in a frenzy when I grabbed his hand, and his gaze snapped to me.

"Go with your dad," I instructed.

"But Parrish-"

"We still need to give statements for what happened here. Besides, Parrish needs to know what's going on, Lydia and I can take care of it," I kissed him softly on the cheek before running my clean hand over his face, "Go be with him, we'll be fine." He took one last look at the rest of us before handing me his keys and following after the paramedics.

* * *

After Derek let Parrish shower and borrow his clothes, we gathered around the two of them in the loft while Derek examined his bare hands. He squinted at them in confusion, for there were no burns or marks of any kind.

"He covered you in gasoline?" Derek queried, and Parrish nodded.

"It's the hair and nails, isn't it?" Lydia asked Derek, "The - the parts of the body that are essentially dead."

"Well they should be gone," I agreed.

"I was set on fire," Parrish reminded us in a bewildered tone, "All of me should be gone."

"Not if you're like us," Scott rebuked, studying Parrish with an intensity that would make most squirm.

"Like you?"

"I don't think he's like us," Derek argued.

"Then what is he?" I almost smirked at the confusion growing on Parrish's face while we talked around him.

"Sorry, but I have no idea."

"But you knew about Jackson and Kira," Scott reminded Derek.

"This is a little out of my experience," Derek explained before pointing to me with his thumb, "You may have more luck asking June, who lived in New York City. I bet you she's seen it all."

"Sorry, but I haven't either. The only thing that's coming up right now is Daenerys Targaryen, and the whole 'Fire cannot kill a dragon' thing. I swear if dragons are real-"

"There might be something in the bestiary," Derek brought us back to the topic at hand, "Did you try Argent?"

"I don't know where he is," Scott explained.

"Okay, hold on, what's a bestiary?" Parrish asked, "Actually, that's not even my first question. Just - just tell me one thing. Are all of you like Lydia?" All eyes fell on her.

"Me?"

"Are you all psychic," He elaborated and I scoffed.

"Psychic?" Derek repeated disbelievingly, but Parrish nodded.

"Yeah."

"Not exactly," Scott answered for him.

"Okay, then what are you?"

Derek and Scott shared a look coupled with a few gestures of the head in silent conversation. Derek seemed to relent, and Scott closed his eyes before turning back to Parrish. When he opened them, I could see the bright red of the alpha staring at a shocked deputy.

He had to sit down while we explained what we each were, and what was currently going on. I showed him a bit of my magic, while Scott explained almost everything he could while still pertaining to the situation at hand.

"What's a kanima?" Jordan asked, and Scott and I shared a look. I shook my head and Scott looked back down at him.

"We'll get back to that," Scott assured him, "Just know that everyone like us, everyone with some kind of supernatural ability is on the dead pool."

"But I don't even know what I am," Parrish argued.

"I'm pretty sure they don't care," Derek told him, and I elbowed his side.

"Lighten up a little, dude," I muttered.

"How many professional assassins are we talking about?"

"We're starting to lose count," Lydia explained.

"But is it still just professionals?" Scott asked us all.

"I don't think Haigh's ever tried anything like this," Parrish reasoned, "I think he was taking a chance."

"Five million dollars is quite the chance," I rationalized. "But that also means anyone with the dead pool could take a chance."

"But if Haigh had it, then who else does?"

"And how are they getting it?" I finished, and we let that hang in the air.

* * *

School was unusually quiet the next day. After the events at the sheriff's station followed by a long explanation from Lydia about her grandmother, I was somewhat grateful for the silence. I had picked up both Stiles and the sheriff, who was stitched up and in a sling, in Stiles' jeep with Lydia before taking them all back to the Stilinski residence. Stiles and Lydia invited me to help them crack Lorraine's code that she left for Lydia, but I quickly refused, explaining to them that I was helping Malia with some last-minute studying during our free period.

Speaking of Malia, she begged me to go to the bonfire that was happening that night. I was very hesitant to go, but of course I couldn't resist her begging for very long. She asked me to bring a flask of quote, "Vodka so strong it will give me a Russian accent." I wasn't sure which surprised me more: the fact that she wanted to drink, or the fact that she knew vodka was Russian.

"I'm just saying we can totally get drunk together," She encouraged, as if that was what we should do, "Isn't that kind of like a bonding thing?"

"Yes, illegally drinking is definitely a bonding thing," I sarcastically explained while we walked down the hallway to my locker, "Look, it's not even about that. I just don't really like large fires. Call me crazy, but witches are a bit superstitious about them now. Ever since Salem..." I trailed off when I looked at her confused face, "I'll go over it some time. Point is, I'm just iffy on that, I'm not sure if I'm totally up for a party."

"Didn't you go to like a ton of parties back in New York?"

"Yeah, I did, but there wasn't much going on with them. The last party I went to in Beacon Hills ended with me being attacked by an Oni and nearly slipping into hypothermia."

"Well, you'll be near a fire, so that won't happen this time," Malia argued.

I huffed, "I already told you I'd go Malia, but I'm not going to drink with you."

"I'll take it. Meet me there at eight, and bring the vodka!" She strut down the hallway past a frantic Liam and Mason. My eyes widened as I looked on at him, and I could practically see the sweat forming on his forehead. Scott walked up to me and in my peripheral, I could see him staring down at Liam in the same worried manner I was.

I put my hand out on his chest when he tried to follow Liam, "We have econ in like two minutes, maybe you should give him the day? Then you can go see what's up with him, sound good?"

Scott slowly nodded and walked with me to Coach's classroom. It wasn't a terrible day overall, it just felt like we were trying to recover from something that wasn't entirely finished. I mean, the dead pool was still in play, Lydia's grandmother might be killing people via the dead pool, and this list is becoming more widespread. So overall, today just felt like an in-between kind of day.

Scott and I met up in the emptying hallways as students went home to get ready for the bonfire. With the help of Scott's nose, we were able to locate Liam to an isolated stairway near Coach's office and the locker room. He fiddled with the knots on his lacrosse sticks as Scott and I sat down on either side of him.

"Hey," Scott started off softly, "You okay?"

"Hey," I nudged Liam with my knee when he didn't reply. He looked into my eyes, and I made sure that I conveyed nothing but reassurance in my own stare back at him.

"Last night, my printer went off by itself. I couldn't turn it off," My eyebrows scrunched in confusion as to how a faulty printer would bring about such fear, but Liam continued, "I hit the cancel button, but it just kept printing."

"Printing what?" Scott asked, and Liam dug out several folded sheets of paper from his back pocket. Handing them to Scott, I peered over to read what it was. My eyes widened in worry when I saw the dead pool, with several new alarming details.

"What the hell is this?" We all turned our heads to the yells of complaint coming from Coach Finstock's office. Hopping up off the stairs, we went down to the doorway where a significant pile of papers littered the floor. They all seemed to be coming from the printer in Coach's office, which was whirring away despite the coach's attempts at stopping it. I picked up a sheet of paper that landed on my feet and saw how similar it looked to the papers Liam gave Scott.

Moving us away from the door to Coach's office, Liam stood to the side and let us see what was going on.

"See the difference?" He inquired, as I compared the list in my hand to the list in Scott's.

"Derek's not on the list anymore," Scott answered worriedly.

"And I'm not worth three million," Liam pointed out, "It's eighteen now. Eighteen million dollars." As soon as he said that, my phone vibrated in my pocket, pulling it out while still looking at the list, I didn't check to see who was calling.

"Hello?"

"June? Oh thank God."

"Stiles?" I asked, slightly confused as to why he was calling me, "What's going on?"

"The list, Lydia's printer just started printing the dead pool."

"Yeah that happened to Liam and Coach too," I muttered, still gazing at the giant number on the paper.

"That's not all, the list has some changes. Your number, it's not twenty-two anymore, it's-"

"Thirty. Thirty million. Liam's went up to eighteen, this isn't just me."

"No but it is your parents, they're not on the list anymore. Does that mean-?"

"I'm going to call them this afternoon, but several names were taken off the list in favor of upping the prices on others. I'm hoping for the best, here."

"Oh, okay. I just figured you should know first. I don't-" His voice grew softer, " - I don't want to make the same mistake twice."

My mouth opened in surprise, "Oh. Oh - um - thank you, Stiles. Thanks a lot."

"Please be safe, June. I love you."

"You too, Stiles." I hung up the phone somewhat unwillingly. A twinge of longing struck at my heart before I snapped my attention back to Scott. "Lydia's printer is printing the dead pool on its own accord too. That could be how it's getting around to more people."

"The benefactor's getting desperate."

"Anyone with a printer in Beacon Hills could be fair game for this list."

"That just means nearly everyone could be trying to kill us."

* * *

"You made it!"

"As promised, and I come bearing gifts," I started looking around at the crowd, "I also apparently overdressed for tonight."

"Nah, you look great, can I have some vodka now?" Malia practically ripped the flask out of my hands like a greedy toddler who was just given their favorite toy. Not bothering to even try and take it back, I joined her in dancing along to the beat and the flaming cyclone in the middle of the pulsating crowd.

It was good music for the most part, I mean, the DJ looked like your typical trust fund, high school dropout with dreams of "making it big," but otherwise it was a hoot. I especially enjoyed seeing fellow classmates falling down and making an ass of themselves left and right, for it gave me great ammunition for when Monday rolled around.

Thankfully, nobody really came up to Malia or myself. We just enjoyed each other's company in the sense that we were trying to have a fun time. Despite everything going on around us, I kind of was, until-

"So you miss him," Malia was a fair few swigs of Grey Goose in, but I don't think that was what gave her the blunt attitude.

"What?" I shouted over the music.

"You miss him, I can smell it on you over your perfume. Over almost everything, really. You miss him bad." I stopped dancing, but Malia was a machine, she just kept going.

"Yeah," I agreed, not bothering with a lie, "Yeah I miss him a lot."

"I kissed him once, you know," My eyes snapped to her in shock.

"What?"

"When we were in Eichen House, it was my first kiss. I kind of just went for it."

"Why are you telling me this?" I asked, pangs of hurt and reluctant jealousy taking away from the time I was having.

"He couldn't kiss me back," She explained, still dancing and holding the flask, "He said he was in love with you, and that he couldn't kiss me because he needed to get back to you to tell you that." Despite logic, and the hurt I had stored for Stiles after his actions with the dead pool, my heart soared, and I felt my cheeks flush.

"Again, why are you telling me this?"

"Just go be with him, June. Yeah, he did some really stupid stuff, but he did it because he loves you. He loves you more than I hate math, which is a lot. If anyone's going to figure out their problems, it should be you two."

I stopped Malia from dancing by throwing my arms around her, "You have no idea how much I needed to hear that. Thank you." I let go of her and made my way through the crowd, heart nearly pumping out of my chest with excitement. I saw Scott on the way, and gave him a hug. He seemed surprised, but hugged me back regardless.

The entire drive home, Stiles was the only thing on my mind. Ginny was right, I needed to hear him out, needed to let him explain to me what was going on. He's been nothing but understanding to me needing space from him, and he deserved to know everything that was going on with me in my time away from him. I couldn't help but wonder if we were going to be able to talk through this, and if I could just be able to tell him how much I still love him.

I raced into my dark house, and headed directly to my bedroom to change into something more comfortable. The entire time I climbed the stairs, I had my phone to my ear, waiting for Stiles to pick up.

" _Hey this is Stiles, and you missed me-_ "

"Ugh, come on Stiles, pick up won't you. Hey Ginny," I called out to my Guardian as I opened the door to my room, "You're right. I'm gonna go talk to Stiles." I quirked an eyebrow when I received no response. She was here when I left for the bonfire, "Ginny, you home?"

The next thing I know, a searing pain shot up my right leg, and I crumpled to the floor, crying out in agony. Glancing down, I saw a frightfully large throwing knife protruding from my thigh. Out of the corner of my peripheral, a man dressed in all black emerged from the en-suite bathroom in my room and into my line of sight.

"Sorry, darling. But Ginny's a bit preoccupied at the moment."


	18. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16: An Englishman and a Stiles**

I was moaning in pain through my teeth as well as panting heavily. The man in black started looking around the room as if he were a prospective buyer for the house, ignoring me while the blood seeped from my leg and into the carpet. I removed my hands from my wound and tried to magically stop him from moving.

"Oh dear, I'm almost offended," He drawled while still moving. I froze, staring at my hands. "You're worth thirty million dollars on a supernatural dead pool, don't you think I would've done my research?"

"You know about me?" I groaned, biting down on my lip when my leg spasmed painfully.

"I know about all of you, including your friends that are currently at the school bonfire. That knife currently sitting in your leg is laced with mistletoe, enough to keep you out of commission, at least while we have fun."

"Something tells me you and I have different ideas of fun," I grunted, trying my best to even my breathing. I also tried to move my leg, but I was hit with flashes of excruciating pain. It was hard for me to focus, but I did my best to keep attention on the man staring around my room.

He had an air about him that reminded me of someone I would see in my parent's lifestyle. Like he would fit right in in a suit and tie at a benefit for some charity. I would've thought him handsome had it not been for the fact that he just threw a knife into my leg, and he was tauntingly playing with another one.

His hair was slicked back and his beard was trimmed closely to his face, blue eyes shining in the dim light of my lamp that I had left on before I went to the bonfire. He was dressed head-to-toe in black, which made him seem paler than what I think he actually was. Handsome or not, he said something that caught my attention.

"What do you mean, Ginny's busy?" I asked, finally having enough energy to think somewhat clearly.

He sighed, "Well she wasn't on the list, and there really is no reason to kill off such a pretty bird when she doesn't have an even prettier price over her head." He had a British accent of all things, and talked smoothly with a posh polish.

"What did you do to her?" I began to panic, wondering where she was and just how I could get past this man to get to her. "Enough about her, though, let's talk about me. I'm sure you're wondering just who I am."

"Maybe a little bit," I snapped, trying to stop the blood from escaping around the knife still stuck in my leg.

"Well it's a good thing you're not too concerned, because I wasn't going to tell you." I stared blankly at him.

"Well just to keep the conversation going, I'm gonna call you Slice," I bit back sarcastically, wondering where the hell I had dropped my phone.

"Terrible nickname, but it's quite fortunate that you won't be alive long enough for it to really annoy me." He promptly turned around and walked back inside the en-suite bathroom. I whipped my head around as best as I could manage before spotting my phone nearly under my bed. Leaning over, and swallowing the whimpers of pain, I grabbed a hold of my phone and hastily shoved it in my vest pocket. Just in time too, for Slice walked out right after I placed my hands back on my wound.

"Time to go, darling," He was quick to advance over to me, and I was too slow to try and fight back before he grabbed a fistful of my hair and dragged me out of the room. I cried out in pain as my legs were jostled around with the knife still stuck in it.

Slice held me over the edge of the stairs by my hair, and was quickly face-to-face with me. I sucked in a sharp breath as he grinned in a terrifying manner.

"Now, love, here's the thing you should know: I like to play with my food before I eat it," My eyes widened, "This should be fun," Was all he said before sending me hurtling down the stairs. I felt my legs go over my head at least once, and several painful blows to my ribcage before my world was once again at a stand-still, only this time at the bottom of the stairs. Not even allowing the pain to overtake me, I started pushing myself over to the front door. Weakly, my hand reached up to the door handle, but I was stopped by a hand grabbing my wrist.

"Ah, ah, ah, June, why are you trying to leave? I thought we were having such a magnificent time together," His smile was sickly sweet, and it took all I had not to retaliate. As a means of punishment, I suppose, Slice pulled the knife out of my leg ever-so-slowly. He stared intently at my face as it twisted up in pain, and I couldn't help but cry out. His eyes were shining as he stared down at the now open wound. Following his gaze, I started to internally panic at the amount of blood that was leaking from the wound. I also realized that the mistletoe was not actively entering my bloodstream anymore, meaning I only had about ten minutes left without my magic.

"Now, now, be a good girl and come with me to the kitchen, shall we?" He dragged me by the arms, and I lay limp, not wanting to make this any easier for him. He dropped me in the middle of the kitchen and set down a bag I hadn't noticed slung around his shoulders on top of the counter. He pulled out a rope, and began unwinding it. Slice was quick in tying my wrists behind my back and my ankles over one another.

"Odd question, but do you have a speaker system?" I was too focused on trying to breathe properly since it was painful to even inhale. I heard him tut and leave the kitchen. Realizing that I might not get another chance, I wriggled my vest around until I could dig my bound hands into the pocket and reach my phone. Pulling it out ever-so-carefully, I turned my head around to make sure that my blood-soaked hands could still unlock it. As if some higher being was on my side, it unlocked on the first try. I was quick to go into my phone app, and check my favorites list.

My process was cut off with the sound of Tchaikovsky, followed by the same footsteps. Pressing what I hoped was the right name, I saw the call go through before stuffing it back into my pocket and twisting back around. Just in the nick of time, for Slice strode back into the kitchen.

"This is so much better," He began, "Now I can think properly."

To spare the gory details, I'll summarize: He beat the crap out of me. By the time he straightened up, only slightly out of breath, I was a sight. I was still bleeding from my leg, my shirt was torn in places from all the kicks landed to my torso, and my lip was split open and bleeding. I was sure to have a black eye, and could feel blood trickle down from my nose. I leaned back against the cabinets, wheezing with every breath that I took. At this point I was fairly certain that at least one rib was fractured, and my shoulders were locking up in their position behind my back.

"I think it's time, don't you agree?" I nearly vomited at the sight of my blood splattered across his face. He creeped forward with a knife in hand, and raised it above his head. Bringing it down, I heard it clatter to the ground. I realized that the mistletoe had worn off at the perfect moment, and my magic returning sent me across the kitchen before I could die.

Slice seemed at a loss for words. Adrenaline fired up my system, and I suddenly had tunnel vision. The rope untied itself from my hands, and slithered over to Slice. Whipping upwards at the speed of light, it bound itself to him, effectively forcing him to relinquish the knife that was originally intended to be used against me.

"I don't understand - I - the mistletoe-"

"Is not like wolfsbane. Mistletoe eventually leaves the bloodstream, and you took out the only way it would stay in." I saw him glance at my leg, and I saw nothing but red. Closing my eyes, I let my magic take over, thinking of only ways to inflict pain and suffering the same way he did to me. When I was slipping, all I could hear was Stiles' voice calling out to me. Blood was rushing through my ears but his voice still called out to me as clear as day.

It slowly grew louder and louder in volume until I realized it wasn't Stiles calling out my name. And it wasn't in my head, either.

"June!" I snapped my head to the side to see Sheriff Stilinski pointing his gun at Slice, who was on the floor, nearly unconscious. I felt the sheer fury subside and I looked on in relief at his presence.

"Sheriff?"

He holstered his weapon, "I got your call. An ambulance is on its way, where's Ginny?"

I rounded on Slice, and I fell down to my knees with an ease that I didn't know was actually possible due to my injuries. In a low, menacing voice, I spoke, "Where's Ginny?"

There must've been a look on my face that he didn't like, for he cowered in fear. "Upstairs," He spit out, blood dribbling down his chin. I scowled at his appearance, and how pathetic he looked after a seventeen-year-old girl got her hands on him. Grabbing his collar with both hands, I slammed his head into the wall, and he slumped over in unconsciousness. Just as the sheriff helped me up, we heard sirens wail down our street. Throwing an arm over his shoulder, the sheriff carried me out front to the arriving ambulance and backup.

"Ginny-" I started, the strength disappearing and the blood loss taking its toll.

"I'm going back to go get her, but you need a hospital, stat," He assured me and at the same time, ushered me into the arms of the paramedics that flung open their back doors. They all lifted me up onto the gurney in the back, and the last thing I remember was one of the EMT's flashing a light in my eyes before they rolled into the back of my head, and I slipped into a painful unconsciousness.

* * *

My eyes fluttered open and I immediately had the crushing feeling that I was still stuck with Slice. I flung my body upwards into a sitting position and felt a stabbing pain in my right side. Feeling a hand on my arm, I whipped my head to the side only to see Melissa McCall. Her eyes were wide, no doubt mirroring my own, and her hand gently moved to my back. Stroking up and down, she didn't remove her hand until I was calm.

Glancing around me, I could see daylight flooding into an apparent hospital room. I was attached to an IV as well as a several other machines I didn't want to worry about. I started removing all the things that weren't protruding from my skin, like the clip that was on my finger, and the band encasing my arm. I flinched the whole way through, and Melissa grabbed my arm when she eventually caught on to what I was doing.

"And just where do you think you're going?"

"I need to speak to the sheriff," I insisted, and Melissa's grip held firm.

"Yeah, I don't think so. Sweetie, look at the state of yourself, you have a three fractured ribs, two black eyes, a minor concussion, and not to mention the amount of blood loss you sustained due to the knife that went through a major artery in your leg. June, you shouldn't even be awake right now."

"I need to know what happened to him, what happened to Ginny."

"The man's name is Ethan Brehm, he's been on the FBI's Most Wanted for three years. The sheriff has him in custody, his wounds weren't as severe as yours. They're arranging a transfer within the hour to San Francisco. He's never going to bother any of us again."

I nodded, tears collecting in my eyes as I remembered what happened what must have only been last night. It was a face that would haunt my dreams indefinitely. It was also the first time I had ever wished someone had died, as some kind of sick eye for an eye. Bile rose in my throat as I lifted the covers off my legs to see an incredibly large bandage wrapped around the entirety of my thigh, replacing the knife that had made a home there for a brief period.

"And Ginny?" I muttered thickly, trying to take my mind off of him. When Melissa said nothing in reply, my head shot up to meet her hesitant gaze.

"Melissa," I interrogated, "Where is she?"

"She's still in intensive care," Melissa replied quietly, and I tensed.

"Why?"

"She took significant blows to the head. We're guessing one was caused by Brehm, and the other was a result of her falling onto something like the corner of a counter of some sort." My breathing picked up again, and the tears couldn't seem to stop falling. Melissa rest a gentle and reassuring hand back on my shoulder as I collected my thoughts.

"I'm seeing her," I stated, continuing to remove machinery from my body.

"You're getting rest, and you're getting it now," She ordered, and I huffed.

"No offense, Melissa, but you couldn't really stop me," I scoffed, continuing to move until I winced in pain from the ache in my ribs.

"No offense, June, but I'm not going to have to," She mocked, and I rolled my eyes before staring up at her.

"Please, she's all I have," I argued quietly, and I watched her resolve crumble.

"You and Stiles are too alike for anyone's good," She remarked and I froze.

"Stiles?"

Melissa's expression grew into one that read, "I should not have said that," when she turned to face me again.

"Stiles and Lydia went to Eichen last night after they cracked Lorraine's list. It turns out Brunski was working for Meredith, who is apparently the benefactor."

My eyes widened, "Are they okay?"

"Aside from their own brush with death, yes. Stiles is downstairs with a concussion and Lydia is at the station trying to get Meredith to talk."

I paused, "Okay there is no way in hell that I'm staying put now, Melissa. I need to talk to Stiles."

Melissa sighed and strode to the door, "I somehow knew you were going to keep trying." she opened it and was out in the hallway. Before I could even move any more, she came back in with a wheelchair. She instructed me to sit and hold onto the IV stand while she wheeled me out of my room.

We sat in the elevator as she pressed the button for the second floor, and we let the silence envelop us. She soothingly rubbed my shoulders as I anxiously bounced my good leg waiting for the moment where I would see my boyfriend.

She parked me outside the door as she walked in. My heart started pounding when I heard his voice.

"Hey, did you find the tape player?"

"No, but I did find a patient who was adamant on seeing you," She replied before walking out to me. She grabbed my hand and stood me up so that I could walk into the room. Stiles' eyes flicked up to me when I rounded the corner, and immediately he stood up to face me. Worry stretched across his features as he looked me up and down.

"June? Oh my god, what the hell happened to you?"

"Nothing I can't handle," I replied back in what I thought was a reassuring manner, but appeared to only make Stiles' worry increase tenfold. Behind me, I heard the door shut, and soon the only sounds I could hear were mine and Stiles' breathing.

"I heard you and Lydia almost got killed," I stated, ignoring my shaking hands.

"Scott, Liam, and Malia too," My eyes widened in surprise, "Someone tried to burn them last night at the bonfire," He must've noticed my worried expression, "They're all fine, though. Derek came through and kicked the crap out of them."

"And you?" I asked, and his gaze met mine. I noticed his hands were fidgeting in an uncomfortable manner.

"What about me?"

"Are you fine?"

"No," His reply was almost immediate, "I missed my girlfriend's call last night. And now I know she was calling for help. How could I be fine?"

"I didn't call you for help last night," I stated, and Stiles cocked his head.

"Oh, you - you didn't?" He scratched his temple, and I almost smiled.

"No, I didn't."

"Well then why - why did you call me?"

"I called you to tell you that I love you, Stiles."

His eyes went wide, "You do?"

I rolled my eyes and limped forward, "Yes you idiot, I love you. But you scared me."

"How did I scare you?"

"I just got you," I answered, and frustration flickered across his eyes.

"Yeah, so you keep saying."

"You mean everything to me, and I want to be with you. If something were to happen to my parents, the coven would find a way to blame Ginny and me. In retaliation they would likely tell surrounding covens about my existence. I would have to leave Beacon Hills, leave my friends, leave you. That's why I was so angry, because I cannot take that chance, Stiles, not with you."

Stiles' gaze softened into remorse. He guiltily stared down at his hands before speaking, "I thought I was going to lose you if I did tell you about your parents."

I quirked an eyebrow, "How so?"

"I thought you would accept the invitation to go back to New York just so you could keep an eye on your parents. I just didn't want you to leave me, not when I just got you."

I almost laughed, "Stiles, you need to know that I don't want to leave you. I love you, and I want to be by your side."

"You do?"

"I'm so sorry I shut you out," I told him in earnest, "And I hope you can forgive me."

"As long as you can forgive me for not telling you about your parents," He countered, and I couldn't help but smile and nod. He walked over to me and slowly tucked my hair behind my ear. He gently grabbed a hold of my face and delicately kissed me. I couldn't help but smile into the kiss, reveling in the fact that I was in his arms again.

On any other day I would have loved to have him wrap his arms around me, but this time all I felt was pain. I flinched as he pulled me closer to him, breaking from the kiss. When he opened his eyes, they flashed worryingly as he looked down at my own face, which was screwed up in discomfort.

"Oh god, did I hurt you?" He asked me and I shook my head.

"No, no, I just have a fractured rib that I forgot about."

"How do you just forget you have a broken rib?"

"I kind of forget about a lot of things when I'm kissing you, Stiles," I defended, and a boastful smile creeped onto Stiles' face.

"It's a good thing we're in a hospital, then."

"Yeah, about that," I started, "I need to get out of here."

Stiles stared at me in disbelief, "You're not serious."

"I'm dead serious, I need to go back home."

"You need to get some rest, is what you need," he argued, ushering me over to the bed in his room. I dug my heels into the linoleum in attempt to retaliate.

"Back home were some ingredients Ginny and I bought to make a stronger healing potion. I need to go make a batch and then come back here."

"Why do you need to come back here?" Stiles asked and I flinched.

"Um - Ginny, she - uh - she's here."

"Ginny's here? Did something happen to her?"

I stared down at my hands, "Yeah - um - Melissa kind of skirted around it but as far as I know she's in a coma because of what happened."

"What did happen?"

"I can show you if you take me home."

"June, I don't think that's a good idea, really. The dead pool is still up and running, what if someone tries to hurt you again?"

"All the more reason to make a healing potion. I need to heal so I can defend myself and others if need be."

Stiles ran a hand through his hair, "You're going home with or without my help, aren't you?"

I pat him on the shoulder, "That's a given by now, Stilinski."

"Why are we dating again?"

I grinned, "Are you going to help me out or what?"

Stiles shrugged off his flannel, "Yeah, yeah. Here, put this on." He helped me put it on in a way that didn't involve much effort on my part. His flannel was warm and smelled of him, and for the first time, I could understand the appeal of wearing a significant other's clothing. Quickly, Stiles left a note in the room for Melissa explaining our whereabouts. Clad in nothing more than socks, the flannel, and a hospital gown, Stiles escorted me out of the room and into the busy hallway of the hospital.

It was fairly easy getting out of the hospital, which worried me slightly. Ultimately, we just had to get to the elevators and past reception, so it wasn't terribly difficult a task to begin with, but still, nobody bothered to stop the girl in the hospital gown.

Not wanting to leave it in the parking lot of the mental institution where he almost died twice, Stiles brought the jeep to the hospital. He was sure to help me get in safely and with as little pain as possible. It was very sweet, but the task was still painful, especially with my leg.

Driving up to my house, I could only stare at the front from my seat in Stiles' jeep. He pulled up on the driveway, and ran around the car to help me out. He spun my legs so they were facing him, and I watched his face as he registered the bandage on my leg, but opted to not ask me about it just yet. His arm wound itself around my hips, and I placed my hands on his shoulders, as he gently, yet awkwardly set me down on the ground. Together, we walked up to the front doors, and crossed the threshold under the crime scene tape still up on the doorway.

Having been preoccupied with other endeavors last night, I didn't fully register my surroundings and the mess Slice and I made. Freshly dried blood was sitting at the foot of the stairs in the foyer, and drag marks made their way down the hall into the kitchen. Several spindles on the staircase were splintered from where I must have hit them when I was shoved down the stairs. When I shut the door, I could see a handprint run down the door from the handle to the floor.

My stomach knotted when I heard Stiles suck in a breath sharply. He muttered a few profanities under his breath, but that was it. His fingers folded over mine, and he squeezed tightly, and that was enough for me to continue. Still limping, I followed the track marks into the kitchen, which was much worse for wear. Blood was splattered everywhere, and flashes of last night danced across my eyelids every time I blinked.

"June, we don't have to be here if you don't want to be," Stiles assured me quietly, and I straightened up.

"No," I said, "We need to do this. For Ginny." My eyes flickered to the wall opposite the kitchen leading back out into the hallway. I saw a sizable dent where Slice's head must've been bashed in thanks to my magic. That was all it took for me to turn back to Stiles.

"Is your dad done with this scene?"

He nodded, "I texted him a bit ago when I was getting my jeep for you, they finished up the crime scene this morning. They were waiting for you to come home to take the tape down."

I gave a curt nod before clapping my hands together, "Let's get to it then." I spread my hands out in front of me, and the kitchen came to life. Lights flicked on as the cabinets opened, and out came the kitchen cleaning supplies. They wasted no time in setting to work, the mop bucket filling up and scrubbing diligently at the blood that was trying to engrain itself in the expensive wood floors and cabinetry.

I turned to look at Stiles and smiled, wincing as my lip cracked a bit. His eyes were wide as he watched the magic erasers magically cleaning the counter tops, and the aromas of cleaning supplies filled our noses.

"I feel like you just made a part of my childhood come to life," He muttered, and I grinned.

"Harry Potter?" I guessed.

"Fantasia," He corrected, "The Sorcerer's Apprentice thing with all the cleaning supplies."

"Yeah, except these guys won't flood the kitchen or any of that stuff," I disagreed, "They'll be done in about five minutes or so."

Five minutes came and went, and the kitchen grew to look spotless. It made me feel slightly better about being there in my kitchen now that it wasn't covered in blood. I sent the cleaning supplies into the hallway to finish up cleaning the downstairs.

"Okay, so are you going to help me with this potion?" I asked, and Stiles' head whipped around to look at me.

"Can I even help with a potion? I mean I'm not - I'm not a witch."

I shrugged, "Neither is Ginny. You don't necessarily need magic to make potions."

"Are you sure you want my help with this, June?"

"Yeah, absolutely. It'll be just like cooking something."

"You've lived with me for a week, I think you know just how capable I am at cooking."

I laughed, "It's a good thing I'm doing this too, then."

Stiles smiled and we set to work. He followed my instructions down to the letter, and was an expert at helping make the potion. He ran into the library and pulled out the book on healing potions ( _Healing Potions: Everything from Strep Throat to Tuberculosis)_ and helped gather up the ingredients. Ginny and I had several cabinets filled with potion ingredients, which fascinated Stiles to no end, and when he wasn't needed, he occupied his time with reading some of the labels.

"Juniper berries, butterfly's wing, Blue Mountain flower, this is so odd. Why does all of this sound familiar?" He asked.

"You ever play Skyrim?" I asked, not looking up from the large pot that sat on the stove as I stirred in another ingredient. From the corner of my eye, I saw Stiles' head whip around to face me.

"Wait a second, the stuff to make healing potions in Skyrim is what you use to make healing potions in real life?"

"Well yeah," I answered, setting down the stirring spoon and facing him, "The guy who created Skyrim is a witch. He just used some of the names from one of these books to gather inspiration."

"Wow," Was all Stiles could say.

I grinned, nodding, "There is a large aspect of my life that feels like something from a fantasy world."

Stiles agreed and stared at the pot that held the potion, "Is that done?"

"Almost," I replied, turning back to the book, "According to the recipe, it just needs to simmer for about twenty minutes. In the meantime, I am dying to get out of this thing," I gestured to the ensemble that I was wearing. "Care to help me to my room?"

"Yeah, sure," He agreed, walking over to me and grabbing my hand. Together, we walked through the now spotless foyer, past the cleaning supplies that were leaning against a wall, and slowly up the stairs. I magically repaired the spindles along the banister on the stairs as I went along. It was an effort, and we had to go up one at at time, but Stiles was by my side the entire time.

We finally got up the stairs, and we hobbled along to my door. I opened it, leaning against the door as it swung open. Everything seemed the same to me, except for the giant blood stain sitting at the foot of my bed staring me in the face, bright against the white carpet. Gradually, I made my way into the room and started staring around. I made it to the edge of the stain and turned to stare at the en-suite bathroom. Flashes of Slice, or should I say Brehm, tainted my vision, and all I could see was his figure facing me.

"June." Blinking rapidly, I saw Stiles standing right where he did, and I took a deep breath. I limped over to my dresser, and began pulling out undergarments and socks. I went over to my closet and pulled down a blouse and took out some high waisted shorts. I threw them over to my bed and turned around to face Stiles. He seemed to understand me without even needing to hear me speak.

"I'm right outside if you need me," Was all he said before he took to the door and closing it behind him. I sighed and turned around, trying my best to ignore the crimson spot on the floor, and focused on getting dressed. I managed to get Stiles' flannel off, as well as both the socks. I decided on underwear first, and attempted to bend down. Attempt being the key word, for when I bent down, I almost cried out in pain after my ribs began to ache in protest. I huffed and sat down on my bed, bending my legs towards me, when my thigh began to shoot pain up and down my legs, as well as my ribs again.

Slowly standing up, I tried to reach for the ties at the base of my neck to get my hospital gown off. Tears poured out of my eyes out of pain and frustration. I felt utterly useless and pathetic, not being able to do something as mundane as dressing myself. Knowing when to accept defeat, I wiped my tears and took a large breath.

"Stiles?"

The door was opened immediately, and his eyes found mine just as fast, "June?"

"I can't - I need - can you help me?" I still had my underwear in my hands, but Stiles seemed to take no notice. He simply nodded and approached me. He faced me, eyes nothing but certain and reassuring as he grabbed the clothing from my hands. His eyes didn't leave mine as he bent down to my feet. I put my hands on his shoulders, and stepped into my underwear. Slowly, his hands rose up my legs, and settled on my waist, leaving the underwear on my hips. I felt heat rush to my cheeks when I saw Stiles blush just as furiously.

He went back to my bed and grabbed my shorts. He repeated the same process, sliding the shorts up my legs. His hands rested just under my rib cage, feather-light, but I still felt goosebumps rise on my arms when his calloused hands skimmed over the bare skin. Next, Stiles slowly turned me around, fingers ghosting the base of my neck as he untied the hospital gown. I shivered slightly as the cold air hit my bare torso, but froze when I heard Stiles' breath hitch.

"Is something wrong?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"It's just - um - your back - it's - it's almost all purple," He murmured, and I sighed. Looking down, I saw Stiles was merely putting it lightly. A part of me thought that it didn't even look like skin, but rather something I was wearing. Most of my torso looked like a tie-dye shirt of blue, purple, and black, with only several spots remaining my usual pale. I quickly looked back up, tears gathering in my eyes.

"Let's just keep going," I muttered thickly, trying not to burst into sobs. Stiles paused behind me, before returning to the bed. He came back with my bra and walked around to face me. Once again, his eyes looked nowhere but at my own. I broke eye contact when I placed my arms through the straps, and let Stiles slide it up my arms. When I looked back up at him, I couldn't help but smile fondly up at him as his eyes were staring up at the ceiling. I cleared my throat and Stiles took that as a cue to go to my back and hook the bra. It took several tries, but his shaking fingers managed to get there.

Lastly, Stiles slipped my daisy blouse on, coming back around to face me as he buttoned up the shirt all the way to my collar. I worked on tucking it into my shorts as he went through my drawers to find me a pair of socks. He came back with them and my converse and helped me step into all of it. By the time he finished, a significant rose color was tinted on his cheeks. I smiled and stood up on my tiptoes, kissing him in thanks.

We broke apart, and I went back down to my height. "I'm sure the potion is about ready," I claimed, and Stiles nodded. Tangling his fingers in mine, he led me out of the room and down the stairs once more. When we got back to the kitchen, the potion was looking nearly complete. It had the exact light blue color that was described, so I took it off the heat. As I did so, I asked stiles to remove several vials from the dishwasher. Taking one that he handed me, I dipped it into the liquid, which was cold, despite having just been removed from the heat.

Stiles and I repeated the process, him handing me a vial, and me filling it with potion. We got about twenty vials before I had to pour the rest down the sink. We capped all but one, and I told Stiles to place them in the top shelf on the fridge.

"So what is the difference between this healing potion and the one you always make?" Stiles asked me, staring at the vial in my hand.

"Aside from the color, it's a stronger potion. It can heal more severe injuries at a quicker pace," I explained downing the liquid before placing the vial in the sink. "Ooh, it tastes better too. It's like spearmint." Immediately after placing the vial in the sink, I could feel the constant pain I was ignoring subside. I attempted to raise my hands above my head, and felt only a twinge of pain, but it was entirely manageable. I moved my hands to my leg and unwrapped the bandage from it, seeing what I assume was previously a very deep gash, turn into something that would still need stitches, but didn't sink down into my thigh.

Grabbing at the hair tie on my wrist, I pushed my hair into a messy bun before walking over to the fridge. Pulling out two healing potions that Stiles had just put away, I handed one to him and pocketed the other one.

"What's this for?"

"Last I heard, you have a concussion from Brunski." He shrugged, downing it in two gulps. Placing it in the sink, he turned to face me.

"What next?" He asked me.

"I need to get back to the hospital so I can give Ginny one of these potions."

"Is it going to heal her?"

"No," I flinched, "I don't know how to make that strong of a potion yet, but it should wake her up at least. It'll make sure she's okay. Plus I need to get this stitched up," I gestured to my leg, and the gash that resided in it. Stiles' eyes flickered down to it before nodding. Together, we left my house, and climbed into Stiles' jeep. He drove us down to the hospital, and I rolled down the windows due to the nice weather that morning.

"How did you hear about Scott, Liam, and Malia?" I asked Stiles, my head facing him, but leaning back on the headrest.

"Oh, Malia came in to see me that morning. Last night before all that happened, she talked with Scott. She wanted to talk to me, and I apologized. Last I heard, she wanted to talk to you about what happened."

I frowned, "I think your dad or Melissa must've taken my phone. I used it to call the sheriff last night when - well, I called him for help."

I saw Stiles purse his lips before he dug into his pocket for his phone, "Here, you can use mine to tell Malia you're okay." I nodded and shot Malia a brief text telling her the reason I didn't have my phone, and that I was okay.

"Did I also hear that you and Lydia found out that Meredith was the benefactor?" I asked, and Stiles nodded.

"It turns out Brunski helped fake her death. He also killed Lydia's grandmother, she had predicted her own death, as well as everyone on the list she left Lydia."

I nodded, turning my gaze over to the window. We sat in a comfortable silence the rest of the way down to Beacon Memorial. Walking back into the hospital, nothing changed, and nobody noticed our entry. We headed over to the elevators, and made our way back to my room. When I got to the third floor, Melissa was almost immediately on my case.

"And where the hell were you two?" She asked, looking me over, double checking that I wasn't more injured than how she left me.

"Stiles took me home, so I could change clothes. I'm fine, Melissa. I made a batch of healing potions, it took the edge off."

She glanced down at my bare leg, "Yeah, well, you're not out of the woods yet, June. That leg's going to need some stitches."

"How come there weren't any previously?"

"I had to wrap it up as soon as possible and get the nurses out of the room."

"What, why?"

"Your eyes kept fluttering open, and they would glow purple," My eyes widened, "I figured you didn't want people asking you questions." I shook my head and let Melissa guide me down to the room I had previously occupied.

"All the other staff has been looking for you," She grumbled, and I sighed before glancing back at Stiles.

"Just tell them you found Stiles and I in a janitor's closet," I shrugged, and almost smiled at how Stiles tripped over his own feet.

"Well as far as excuses go, that's not the worst I have given." She sat me down on the bed, and cleaned my arm at the injection site before administering anesthesia. She walked outside, and came back carrying a tray of materials used for stitches. In the time she was gone, Stiles sat down next to me. I grinned as his head whipped away from Melissa and I as she began stitching up my leg.

"Queasy, Stilinski?" I quipped.

"Yeah, not a very big fan of needles," He agreed, sounding almost pained. Melissa was finished in about ten minutes, snipping at the string and wiping the wound with disinfectant. She taped some gauze over it and removed her gloves.

"Alright, come back in about a week and a half, those should be ready to take out," She instructed and I nodded.

"Are you tending to Ginny?" I asked, and Melissa stared back at me with a pitiful gaze.

"Yes, would you like to go see her?" I nodded.

"Yeah, but that's not all," I removed the healing potion from my pocket, handing it to her, "This should help her. If you just administer about five milliliters, she should be okay." Melissa nodded, staring at my face.

"Is that why you look so much better?"

"Well I've been sort of avoiding mirrors today, but yes. I'm considerably better."

She nodded, "Okay, follow me." Melissa took my clipboard and marched out of the room and down to the elevators. We rode up to the fourth floor, and walked into the intensive care unit. I felt Stiles slip his hand into mine, but it didn't really register as I gained tunnel vision. Melissa directed us into a secluded room with Ginny lying on a bed.

She had several significant machines hooked up to her, as well as wires and bandages scattered over her head. She was so pale, and her dark features stood out even more. I heard Melissa and Stiles talking, but it was all muffled to me as I sat down on the bed next to her and grabbed Ginny's hand.

In that moment, I wished more than anything that she would just wake up. Tears blurred my vision, and my mind went blank. All I could think about was her, and what she must've went through. Guilt ate at my heart realizing how I wasn't there to protect her like I should've been. I froze when she shifted in her bed. After she settled back down, my head moved over to Melissa, who stood at Ginny's IV with an empty syringe.

"That's a good sign, June. She should wake up soon. Your potion might have saved her life," She smiled reassuringly at me, and left the room, muttering about something she forgot. My gaze moved back to Ginny's sleeping figure like a magnet, and I couldn't seem to look anywhere else.

"June, you've gotta tell me what happened," Stiles quietly begged, and I looked back up at him.

"I ran home to change clothes before I went to find you. I was going to apologize to you, after Malia told me what you said to her in Eichen. I was in my room when - when this man threw a knife into my leg. His name is Ethan Brehm, and he knew all about what I am. He had laced the knife with mistletoe..."

I explained what I could remember to Stiles, pausing to wipe the tears that had fallen and trying to control my hiccups. I did my best to keep going, despite the anger and despair that filled Stiles' eyes. There were several times where he had to stop me just so he could take deep breaths to control his emotions.

"... Your dad stopped me from killing Brehm. The ambulances were hot on his tail, and he took me to one before I passed out. The next thing I knew, I was in the hospital."

Stiles sat down next to Ginny's bed, "Jesus, June."

Tears still ran down my face as I sighed, done with crying. "I'm sorry."

"What? Why are you sorry?"

"That's a lot to load onto someone," I turned back to Ginny when I heard Stiles get up from his spot. When I looked back, he was crouched in front of me.

"That's a lot for someone to go through. I mean - I - do you need anything?"

"Do you think I could stay with you until Ginny comes back?" I requested, and his nod was almost immediate.

"Absolutely," I gave him a small smile. "You know, I wasn't going to let you stay there anyway."

I scoffed, "Oh, really? You weren't going to let me?"

"Nope, I was going to throw you over my shoulder out of your house if we had to stay there a minute longer." I couldn't help but grin.

"I'd like to see you try, Stilinski," I tested before placing my lips onto his. My hands moved to his hair as I kissed him, but we broke apart when Melissa came back into the room holding of all things a cassette player.

"As you requested, Stiles, I found a cassette player," Stiles stood up at her voice, and eagerly took it from her hands. "We need to let Ginny rest," Melissa looked to me, "I've signed both yours and Stiles' release forms, so you can high tail it out of here when you're ready." Stiles took my hand with his free one and guided me to the elevators.

"What do you need a cassette player for?" I asked as he strode through the parking lot back to his jeep.

"Brunski made a tape for every one of victims, and last night he played Lorraine's."

I gasped, "Oh my god, poor Lydia."

"Yeah but that's not it, he didn't play the entire recording," I raised an eyebrow as he handed me the player after we got into his jeep.

"So?"

"So," Stiles dug something out of his pocket. My jaw dropped when he showed me a tape with the words "Lorraine Martin" written on it, "We're gonna figure out what was on the rest of this tape, and why it was so important."


	19. Chapter 17

I felt like my face was frozen into a disbelieving expression, "So let me get this straight. You want to listen to the cassette of Lorraine's murder? Lydia's grandmother?"

"Yeah, the tape of it, why?"

I scoffed, "Don't you think that's - I don't know - and invasion of privacy? A pretty major invasion of Lydia's privacy?"

"June, this woman made a coded list of people who were murdered, including herself, and you're worried about privacy?"

"I'm worried about Lydia," I argued back. "It's her grandmother, I feel like she'll want to burn it or something."

"Well, we can give it to her when we're done with it," Stiles reasoned, "But for now, we just need to figure out how to stop the dead pool, and this could be a really big clue."

My eyes flickered between the tape in his hand and his face. After several seconds of deliberation, I relented, "Fine. But we're giving it back to her immediately after we're done with it."

"Works for me," Stiles pulled out and drove back over to his house. After pulling up to his driveway, he ran around the front of the jeep and over to my side, helping me out of the car before going back to fetch the cassette player I left on the dash.

"Why are you helping me out of the jeep? I already took a healing potion."

"I just don't want your leg to be in any worse shape than it already is."

I paused, "Well, thanks."

"Sure," He shrugged before closing the door and taking my hand before pulling me along into the house. Once inside, we strode by the mirror hanging in the hallway when I froze. My eyes widened as I stared at the girl looking back at me from the reflection.

She looked slightly worse for wear, and that was putting it lightly. Eyes slightly crazed and broken, surrounding them were two different shades of purple that must have been blackened earlier before I took the potion. There was even a scrape above my left eyebrow that I didn't know was there. Several other cuts decorated my face, the most prominent being the one sitting on my lip. My eyes started to water staring at the evidence of last night.

"It's really not that bad," Stiles comforted, "You know, I think it has something to do with the afternoon light coming through slightly dirty windows..."

"You're a terrible liar, Stiles," I sniffled, before smiling, "But thank you anyway."

He leaned forward and kissed my hairline before murmuring, "You're still beautiful, June. Forever and always." I looked away from the mirror and up at him before kissing him on the corner of his mouth.

"Does the - um - are we sure that the cassette player works?" I asked while wiping my tears. Stiles took that as his cue to keep moving into his bedroom, before walking over to his desk. Plugging it in, he pulled out the tape from his pocket before walking to another area of his room and bringing back a chair for me to sit down in. He sat next to me and fiddled with the player, inserting the tape and pressing play. We both perked our ears to listen.

I had to listen to it about three times. The first time, all I could think of was Lydia, trapped in Eichen being forced to listen to this awful tape, and my concentration was a little skewed at that point. The second time I had to understand what was even going on, and Stiles had to keep pausing to explain what they had already concluded from last night.

" _Let's go Lorraine_ ," The third time I sat in the chair with rapt attention, hanging on to every word, hoping for a clue.

" _Listen to me. Please, listen. There's something I have to do, something I have to stop_."

" _I have to take you back to Eichen, Lorraine_ ," Stiles turned up the volume on the player.

" _No, no I don't think you're gonna be taking me anywhere_ ," I glanced at Stiles, not remembering this part of the tape, " _I can hear the recorder in your pocket. It's on now, isn't it? You're making a tape, just like you taped the others_."

Stiles paused the tape, eyes wide in realization, "This didn't happen in Eichen House."

"But then where did she go?" I asked, leaning my head on my crossed arms that were resting on Stiles' desk.

"That's what we need to find out," He told me, pressing the play button again. He was quick to pause it before he dug out his phone. When it was out of his jean pocket, I could hear it vibrating. Glancing at the screen, he was quick to pick up.

"Did Meredith start talking? What - I don't - I mean, yeah - okay! Okay, here, geez," He handed me the phone, rolling his eyes, "It's Lydia."

I put the phone up to my ear, "Hello?"

" _June? Oh my god, are you okay? The sheriff, he - he told me about last night_."

"Saved by the sheriff in a sling, that was me," I tried to sound better than I actually felt. "Enough about me, what about you? Lydia, I'm so sorry, about your grandmother, really."

" _It happened ages ago, June. I just - I don't know. Did you guys pull anything off the tape yet?_ "

"Wait, you gave it to Stiles?"

" _I didn't want it,_ " She argued, " _If it has something about the dead pool on it, then we need it. I don't want to turn it over to evidence. Speaking of evidence, Stilinski told me that your phone was in lock-up. It doesn't actually work anymore because of-_ " She cut herself off.

"Because of what?" I asked her hesitantly, narrowing my eyes.

" _Well there's a lot of cracks in it, but apparently there was also blood that soaked through to the inside of it,_ " I glanced over to Stiles, hoping that he didn't hear what she said, but from the look on his face, I knew he did. " _June, what happened?_ "

"Another assassin," I tried to explain as best as I could without diving into gory detail. I didn't want to do again it after I told Stiles. "He came into my home and waited for me to come back from the bonfire last night."

" _Was Ginny there?_ "

I swallowed, "Yes, yes she was."

I heard her breath hitch and I nearly burst into tears all over again, " _And?_ "

"Um - she's - she's in a coma," I wiped at my face, flinching from the still tender skin. I pushed thoughts of Ginny in the hospital bed away from my mind, taking a deep breath. "But she should wake up soon."

" _Oh, God. Do you - do you need a place to stay? My mom can fix up the guest room-_ "

"Thanks, Lyds, but I'm actually just going to stay with Stiles until she can come home."

I could almost hear the smile come through the phone, " _Oh, I see._ "

"Lydia-"

" _No, I think it's a great idea, you're close to home, you two can go to school together, maybe even slip in a few-_ "

"Call us if you have anything on Meredith," I hastily interrupted, eyes widening and glancing over to a blushing Stiles, who uncomfortably scratched his temple and cleared his throat. "I need to go."

" _I'm glad you're okay, June._ "

"I'm glad you're okay too, Lydia," I spoke softly before hanging up and handing Stiles the phone. He stuffed it back into his jeans and glanced over at me before pressing play once more.

After playing the tape twice more, Stiles and I were becoming discouraged. It wasn't until something caught my attention that I hadn't noticed before.

"Wait, rewind a bit," I instructed, taking my head off of my arms. Stiles immediately obliged, rewinding for a brief period.

"... _back to Eichen, Lorraine_."

" _No, no I don't think you're gonna be taking me anywhere._ "

"That's it," I exclaimed, "That's it right there. Play it again, and turn it up." Stiles followed my instructions, and listening closely. He sat and watched me as I listened to the tape. Lorraine went on about the recorder in Brunski's pocket, and how he recorded the other people he must've killed, but that was not what I was listening to. In the background, I heard a very distinct sound, a sound that I have woken up to in the middle of the night.

"It's a record player," I explained, stopping the tape once again.

"What?"

"The static, in the background, it's a record player. I'd recognize it anywhere."

"But it's not playing any music," He pondered.

"It's the sound that a record makes when the music is done, or if it's a blank record. I hear it all the time when I put a vinyl on before going to sleep. I'll wake up to just a static noise from the needle on the record."

"Okay, so it's a record player," Stiles confirmed, "But what record player?"

I sat and thought about it for a minute, when a lightbulb went off. Suddenly excited, I turned to Stiles, "That night of the full moon, when Lydia cracked the first part of the dead pool-"

"When we were helping teach Malia control at the lake house?" Stiles asked and I nodded eagerly.

"Yes. That night, I went to find Lydia to tell her Malia was fine and that we were coming back here. I found her in a study, and she was staring at the computer with the list of names."

"Okay, why is this important?"

"Stiles, the study was soundproof. I couldn't hear the party going on downstairs. That study also had a record player."

"So Lorraine escaped from Eichen House to go back to listen to a record player?"

"Well she was like Lydia, right?" I asked, suddenly standing up and pacing the floor. "She was a banshee?"

"Yeah, but only once. She predicted Maddy's death and just spent decades trying to predict something else." My eyes widened, and I waved my arms in a 'come on' fashion.

"Stiles, what if she did predict something? And that something wasn't just one person's death, it was a lot of deaths."

Stiles finally seemed to catch on, leaning forward in his chair, "Like the dead pool."

"What if all those years ago, Lorraine predicted it? And she knew there was something in that study that could stop it?" Stiles nodded, getting to his feet, and grabbing his keys.

"Then we need to go to the lake house," He grabbed me by the face and kissed me firmly, "June, you magnificent genius."

I smiled, "I know," I chirped before taking his outstretched hand and letting him lead me back to the jeep.

* * *

We were about halfway to the lake house when Stiles pulled out his phone. Not taking his eyes off the road, he quickly answered.

"Hello? Yeah - I - no, we're headed - we're - she's fine - I - OKAY!" He quickly handed the phone over to me, "It's not like I was attacked too," He grumbled. I grinned, leaning over the console to kiss his cheek before snatching up his phone again.

"Hello?"

" _June?_ "

"Malia, is everything okay?"

" _I was going to ask you that. What happened?_ "

"Nothing I particularly want to go into detail about," I replied, placing my feet up on the dash despite Stiles' whine of protest.

" _Basics?_ " She pressed and I sighed.

"Assassin came into my home, put Ginny into a coma, beat me half to death before I did the same thing in turn to him and the sheriff arrived to stop me from losing control of my magic. I'm fine now, I've taken a healing potion and I'm with Stiles."

" _Are you guys okay again?_ "

"Yeah, yeah we are," I placed my hand over Stiles' that rested on the gear shift, "What about you, are you okay with everyone now?"

" _I mean I guess so. Scott kind of explained everything._ "

"Right before you were nearly burned to death?" I asked her.

" _Yeah basically._ " There was a beat of silence, and I rolled my eyes.

"And are you okay?" I sarcastically asked, continuing the conversation.

" _Oh, yeah. Derek came in with Braeden and stopped them before they could do anything._ "

"That's good," I commented, before once again being enveloped by silence over the phone, "Is there a reason why you're calling?"

There was a beat of silence, " _Nope._ "

I quieted an eyebrow, "No reason whatsoever?"

" _Just calling to make sure you're okay,_ " Malia pressed, but she couldn't lie to me.

"Malia."

" _What?_ "

"What do you mean, 'what?' Why are you lying to me?"

" _I'm not lying._ "

"You're using the same tone you used when you lied about clawing up your math textbook. What's going on?"

I heard her sigh, " _Fine. Scott, Kira and I found-_ "

"Wait, Kira's back in town?" I asked and I heard Malia huff in response.

" _Do you want me to tell you?_ "

"Yeah, sorry," I sat up straighter in my seat.

" _Scott, Kira, and me all found the rest of Satomi's pack. They all were being tracked down._ "

"By another assassin?" I groaned, my head falling back onto the headrest.

" _By hunters._ "

"What?" My eyes shot open and looked to Stiles in surprise.

" _Yeah. Some group of hunters got a hold of the list, and they're not letting anybody leave town._ "

"So what then? What are you going to do?"

" _We're on our way to Argent's. Scott said something about it being the building Kate used to hide in...?_ "

"Okay, what are you going to do there?"

" _Hide, fight, run, I don't actually know what we're going to do. Derek's coming too. Will you be?_ "

"I can't," I explained, "Stiles and I are driving up to the lake house."

" _Why? If you haven't noticed, now isn't really the time for a romantic getaway, June._ "

"What - I - I noticed, thanks," I stuttered, glancing over at Stiles again. I could see he was trying not to laugh, and I slapped my hand against his chest. He let out a chuckle as he shoved me playfully, not taking his eyes off the road. "We think Lydia's grandmother predicted the dead pool, and there might be something in that study that can prove it."

" _What makes you think so?_ "

"If Stiles filled you in, that recording of her death had a record player in the background."

" _Like the record player Lydia listened to all that weekend,_ " Malia gathered, and I nodded despite her not being able to see me.

"Keep Stiles updated on what you plan to do with Satomi," I instructed, glancing out the window as Stiles exited the highway. "My phone's broken, so it's not much use."

" _Will do, we're pulling in now._ "

"Malia," I called, making sure she was still on the line.

" _June?_ "

"Be careful," I pleaded.

" _Sure thing,_ " she responded before hanging up. I held the phone out for Stiles to take but he shook his head.

"Keep it for now."

My eyes widened, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, apparently everybody wants to talk to you today."

"I sense a bit of jealousy there," I snickered, and my boyfriend rolled his eyes.

* * *

We had been inside the study for an indefinite amount of time. There weren't any windows in the room, but I could tell it was dark outside. I could completely understand why Meredith would have been driven out of her mind just listening to the blank scratch of a record for hours on end. It was driving Stiles and I up the wall, but no one wanted to say anything against it, for it felt like our only hope.

Malia had texted me saying that they had met up with Argent. While speaking with him Derek made his own vendetta against the hunters, and everyone joined the crusade. The plan was to wait for nightfall, then the fight would begin. With this in mind, it was even more difficult to just feel like we were sitting there and doing nothing.

Stiles broke first, "What are we even doing, this room wasn't even made for us," He ranted as he stood up. "You know, we need someone like Meredith, or Lydia. And we're just sitting here, listening to a stupid record player play a record that doesn't play anything. Come on," He urged, shutting off the machine, "There's plenty of other things we can be totally useless doing."

I got up to follow him when I froze, head snapping back to the record player. "Stiles, either they accidentally made this room for witches too, or that machine is still on."

"But it's not on," He told me.

I rolled my eyes, "No I know that dumbass, but if that record player is not on, why can I still hear it?" Stiles came and stood next to me, staring at the record player. He carefully inspected the turntable before looking behind it. I peered over the table it was sitting on top of to see what Stiles was staring at. A thick wire connected to the turntable made its way into the wall behind it. Sparing a glance at one another, we both lifted the turntable away from the wall, exposing the wire further.

Stiles crouched down near bottom of the wall and grasped the wire. He glanced at me one last time and I nodded down at him. He nodded back, taking the cable in a more firm grip, before pulling.

It didn't seem like it took much effort at all to break off the bit off wall Stiles had broken off with just one yank. My eyes widened as we both realized the wall was hollow the entire time. Eagerly, Stiles pulled on the wire more until he was standing up and at my side, cable still in his hands. Both looking at each other excitedly, we stepped forward and began tearing at the crack in the wall.

It took us about two minutes to clear the plaster and for the dust to settle, but when we did, our eyes gazed up at the large computers whirring away from their hiding place in Lorraine's wall.

"What are they?" Stiles panted, shaking the dust off of his flannel.

"Computers," I answered, clapping my hands together to get rid of the dust on me. "If I'm guessing right, they're from the 1970s."

Stiles whirled around to me, "How could you just guess that?"

I placed my hands on my waist, "Well, I'm just guessing that's when Lorraine predicted Maddy's death, right? Plus you said she spent decades trying to predict something else. Couple that with Lydia's statement that Lorraine tried multiple different methods to understand how she did it, and boom, you've got 1970s-era computers sitting in a room built by pseudoscientists."

Stiles blinked several times before kissing my cheek, "And you say you're useless."

I blushed, staring at the computer, "So this is it, then?"

Stiles nodded, "It's the dead pool."

"Well if this thing's being used to disseminate the list, then it's probably going to keep going until everyone's dead."

"Then what do we do?"

"It needs some kind of prompt, or command, or something, right?"

I pointed to the top of the computer sitting in the middle, "How about a key?"

Stiles moved closer, staring at the lock, "A key could work."

I nodded, pulling out Stiles' phone, "Lydia needs to know about this."

"Why?"

"She might know a little more about this place than we do, maybe she could find us a key," I suggested, pulling up Skype and calling Lydia. Her face popped up, make-up smudged and wearing what I'm guessing were the same clothes as last night. From the looks of her surroundings, I guessed she was still in the police station, either wrapping things up, or still waiting on Meredith.

"Hey, Lydia."

" _Jesus, I had no idea it was so bad, June,_ " I pursed my lips and looked up at Stiles, who came over and rubbed my back.

"You know, I was going to apologize for this, but now I'm not so sure," I snipped, staring back at Lydia.

" _What happened?_ "

I moved the camera over to the torn-apart wall and the large computers sitting inside it, "We think we may have found something over at the lake house."

Stiles took the phone from me, pushing the screen closer to the lock on the computer, "You see it? There's gotta be a way to turn it off, right?"

" _I don't know_ ," I heard Lydia's voice crackle through the speakers, " _I don't know anything about computers from the 1970s._ "

I smiled, and hit Stiles on the arm, "Told you it was from the 1970s," Stiles looked back at me with an expression that read _so not the point._

" _Okay, where's the monitor?_ " Lydia continued, and Stiles sighed.

"Lydia, there is no monitor," Stiles shuffled away from the computer, frustrated, "There are buttons, knobs, spindles, no monitor." He shifted the phone, attempting to face it to the computers in full view.

" _Wait, turn the phone back,_ " I heard Lydia request, and I scrunched my eyebrows. " _Point it at the carpet._ "

"The what?" Stiles asked, not sure if he heard her correctly.

" _The floor,_ " She snapped, "Just show me the floor." Stiles obliged, and we all started looking around at the floor, hoping to see what Lydia saw.

"Where's the stain?" She whispered, almost to herself. " _There should be red blotches, a wine stain,_ " She explained, and I caught on to what she was trying to say.

Stiles didn't, "There's nothing."

" _But that doesn't make sense,_ " Lydia pondered, and Stiles rolled his eyes. " _I gave the five hundred dollars I was supposed to use to hire cleaners to Brunski._ "

"Lydia, what the hell does wine have to do with anything?"

I nudged his arm, "Stiles, red wine doesn't just disappear. Especially not on a white surface."

I glanced back over to the screen, and Lydia's face became one of realization, " _Unless it wasn't wine._ "

"What? What do you mean?" Stiles and I were at a loss.

" _The ashes weren't ashes, the study wasn't a study, the record player isn't a record player. So maybe, the wine wasn't really wine,_ " She paused, and Stiles and I looked at each other, " _Stiles you have to find the wine. You have to find the bottle, there could be something about it._ "

"What kind? What's it called?"

" _It's a 1982_ Cotes du Rhone _,_ " As soon as she spoke the name, Stiles tossed the phone into my hands and ran out of the room. I fumbled to get a proper grip on it before staring at the screen with my best friend on it.

"Thanks, Lydia."

" _God, what am I going to tell my mom about that wall?_ " She sighed, looking infinitely more tired than when I first called her.

"Look, I will take care of it, and the rest of the room, your mom doesn't have to know, okay? I'll call you back." I hung up the phone right as Stiles bounded into the room, carrying a large bottle with him.

He rattled it, eyes alight with realization, "I think there's something inside." Quickly grasping the bottle from his hands, I chucked it to the floor, broken glass and "wine" collecting on the white carpet. Stiles' stared wide-eyed at me.

"I'll pay her back," I shrugged, diving down into the glass shards, and digging around. I managed to miraculously only cut two of my fingers before pulling out a small key from the wreckage. Stiles wrenched it out of my hands and ran over to the computers. Holding our breath, he stuck it in and turned the lock to the side. A grin so wide it split my lip open again made its way onto my face as we watched the computers start to slowly shut down.

About a minute later, Stiles' phone beeped with a text from Scott. All it read was:

 _A message from the benefactor came through, stating that all the contracts were terminated. It's over._

I read it out loud to Stiles before jumping in his arms with delight. Wrapping my legs around him, I felt him stumble back before steadying the both of us. I pulled my head out of the crook of his neck and kissed him firmly. It took all I had not to smile into the kiss before finally I just couldn't help it. I was finally safe, safe from people trying to kill me, and safe in Stiles' arms.

Stiles showed me once again to the guest room of his house. The sheets were already prepared for me as I set my duffel bag down. He made his way over to his bedroom for the evening, but not before kissing me goodnight. Sighing, I made my way over to the bathroom, washing my face, and flinching every time I ran my hands over the bruises that still had not healed on my face.

I got ready for bed, tucking myself into the bed and turning off the lamp on the nightstand. Despite not being able to see much, my eyes remained wide open. My ears clung on to every creak and sound in the house, and my heart raced every time I heard one. My instincts were telling me to run screaming for the hills, to hide from whatever danger lay around the corner. My mind thought it irrational, knowing that no more assassins would be coming after me, and that I had nothing to worry about.

For the very first time in my life, I let my fear conquer my own mind. Wiping at the tears that I didn't realize had fallen, I treaded over into Stiles' room. The lamp was still on, and he was tossing a baseball in the air, pondering over his own thoughts. He froze when he noticed me in the doorway.

Sitting up, he looked to me, "June?" I sniffled, and saw him tense, "June, what's wrong?"

It seemed as though my mind disconnected from my mouth, and I wasn't able to convey just how terrified I was.

"Do you want to come sleep in here?" Tears streamed from my eyes and my body sagged in relief. In that moment, I was just incredibly thankful that he got it. He understood what I needed, even when I couldn't say.

Wiping at my eyes once more, I nodded, tip-toeing over to the bed. Stiles stood up and peeled back the covers for the both of us. He set the baseball down on his nightstand and turned off the lamp. We settled into the middle of his bed, me lying on top of his chest, hugging him closely. Stiles soothingly stroked my hair.

We were quiet for several minutes before I heard him murmur, "She's going to wake up, June."

That was all it took. I leaned up and kissed him softly, whispering a quiet "I love you" before resting head down on his chest and closing my eyes. The only noises I could hear as I slipped into a dreamless sleep were the sounds of Stiles' breathing and steady heartbeat.


	20. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18: A Not-So-Boring Lacrosse Game**

It had been about a week since we ended the dead pool. I was happy, mostly. I mean, life was pretty normal, save for the gnawing feeling in my gut whenever I thought about Kate and the berserkers. Or whenever I thought about Ginny, still yet to leave the hospital due to incredible head trauma.

She woke up from the coma about three days after Stiles and I drove up to the lake house. I was in class when I got the text on my new phone from Melissa. I practically sprinted out of economics, Coach Finstock belligerently screaming at me to come back. Stiles tried to follow suit, but I made him stay behind so that Coach wouldn't have an aneurism with the lack of order in his classroom.

I about cried when I saw her in the hospital bed. It was majorly due to the fact that Ginny, the only person I had left in the world that resembled any sort of a family, was awake and recovering. There were certain things she had trouble comprehending, and almost punched the nearby nurse on call until I sat down and explained what had happened to her.

Safely out of earshot of my newly conscious Guardian, Melissa explained the process of recovery. There were still fractures to the skull that required round-the-clock monitoring, and Ginny would, for the foreseeable future, be prone to fits.

"Fits?" I asked her, scrunching my eyebrows.

"I'm sorry, there really is no better word for it," She elaborated, "From what we've gathered, there are significant chunks of memory missing from her recent timeline. There are things she won't remember, and she won't remember why. It can lead to such levels of frustration that she won't know where to release it but outwards."

"And this is completely normal?" I asked her, wringing my hands in worry.

"Entirely. Recovery from brain damage can be tricky in the sense that it varies from person to person. It could lead down to PTE, or anything of that variant, we're really not sure-"

"Epilepsy," I blurted out, "You're talking about Post Traumatic Epilepsy."

Melissa put her hands on my shoulders, and made me look her in the eyes, "June, listen to me. Ginny is going to be fine. In a few weeks we can try another healing potion, see if that helps at all."

"I don't know how to make a potion that can effectively fix brain damage," I told her, my voice growing thick due to the sob dying to escape. "Ginny and I haven't gotten that far yet, will she even remember any of the stuff she has left to teach me?"

Melissa sighed, bringing me in for a hug, "We'll just have to wait with time."

A few more days had passed since then, and the doctor's concluded that despite her significant (and in several doctors' opinions, fatal, as I later found out) brain damage, Ginny was making a miraculous recovery. Her memory fell into place simply by speaking with people, and with Sheriff Stilinski, who filled her in on most of what was going on. She merely had to spend her time in the hospital sleeping, eating, or re-learning several basic functions, like how to say certain words, or how to write again.

* * *

I woke up to possibly some of the loudest snores I've ever heard. My eyes fluttered open, and looking up, my nose crinkled in annoyance at Stiles' figure: eyes peacefully shut, and mouth hanging wide open, making sounds that I didn't know could come from him, fill the room. The only thing that made me feel the teensiest bit better was waking up in the warm embrace of his arms, pulling me flush against him in a protective manner.

Lifting my head up, I rolled my eyes in frustration when I glanced over at the alarm clock on Stiles' nightstand. It read a time that was far too early for my liking, and far too late to try and fall back asleep for a little bit longer. It wasn't like I could fall back asleep anyhow, what with Stiles' ridiculous snoring.

I reached a hand out to find a cellphone on the nightstand next to me, only to come up empty-handed. I whipped my head around to a nightstand that contained absolutely nothing. Sighing, I realized I had left my phone and its charger in the guest room. I'm not really sure who I thought I was kidding at that point, I had been sleeping with Stiles in his room ever since last week, when I arrived back at the Stilinski house. Grumbling as silently as possible, I slowly untangled myself from Stiles, and strode out of the room, toes curling due to their contact with the cold floor.

Malia had texted me not ten minutes prior, asking if I could tutor her for an upcoming test. She had double texted, the second being sent in all caps:

 _THE ONE THAT DETERMINES WHETHER OR NOT I AM A SENIOR WITH YOU AND IF I CAN GRADUATE WITH YOU OR NOT. PLEASE HELP._

I chuckled, replying back that we could study out on the lacrosse field, while Scott, Stiles, and Kira attended their early morning lacrosse practice before their game against Devenford Prep the next night. Malia texted thanks, her phone apparently still stuck in caps, and I set my phone down. The upside to waking up early, I suppose, was that I had more time to get ready. I was grateful I could fix my hair, which was all frumpy due to me sprinting in the parking lot of the hospital in the pouring rain from last night. I dug through my duffel bag and pulled out the clothes I was to wear, as well as my curling wand.

I curled my hair before brushing it out, letting the curls die down into their appropriate waves, before clipping some of my hair back. Satisfied with the results, I unplugged the wand, and brought it back into the guest room, before setting it on the nightstand to cool off.

The sun was already in the sky by the time six o'clock rolled around. I slid on my converse before walking back into Stiles' room. He was still sound asleep, snores not having died down. I'm surprised the sheriff didn't hear them from his room, but one faint snore from down the hall was answer enough. I laughed breathily, wondering how I ever had slept here peacefully before. Calmly, I kneeled down on the side of his bed, and tried to shake him awake.

"Stiles," I shook him, but he didn't budge, "Stiles."

"Hmm?"

"You've got an early morning practice for the big game tomorrow, remember?" I spoke slightly louder, but probably still too gently, because he still wouldn't move.

"Hi," Was all he replied back, and I rolled my eyes.

"Listen up, bud, if I'm gonna watch an entire lacrosse game, a sport I genuinely dislike as you damn well know, then you better not suck."

"Not gonna suck," He mumbled in between snores.

"You said you'd drive me to school, and I promised Malia I'd help her study while you practiced. Remember, she has that huge math test coming up?" My voice was growing louder with each sentence. I raised my voice to an annoying level when he started turning away from me. "The one that determines whether or not she's gonna be a senior with us next year? STILES?" He opted for hugging his pillow, and groaned in a dismissive tone. I huffed, turning around in near defeat.

Glancing around, my eyes fell to the murder board I had bought him, and stared blankly at all the notes and articles he had surrounding the benefactor. I even saw in a corner a little figure with a question mark in its face, with the question _Who is the Desert Wolf?_ next to it. I froze when I looked at the opposite corner.

There sat Ethan Brehm's mugshot, his eyes both blackened, nose crooked in multiple places, and under him sat an article about his prosecution. Several other articles about him were encircling it as well, but underneath sat writing that in every way warmed my heart.

 _Day of Trial Date Ideas:_

 _\- Agate Beach_

 _\- Redwood Forest Hike_

 _\- Disneyland/ Universal Studios_

And underneath that list, was written:

 _Anything that takes June's mind off Brehm._

I nearly cried at the sight. Turning back to Stiles, I fondly placed my hand on his shoulder, rubbing my thumb while he snored away. Then, I quickly yanked on Stiles' arm, jerking his body back over to me. Before Stiles could register what was happening, I placed one hand on his stomach, and the other into his hair as I placed my lips onto his.

He was quick to respond, placing his hand in my hair, and sitting up into the kiss as he moaned in surprise and content.

"Mmm, hey," He broke apart from me, "What are you doing? I haven't even brushed my teeth yet."

I smiled at the drowsiness that slurred his speech as he gazed up at me in fondness and confusion. "Frankly, Stilinski, I don't give a damn," I quoted before placing my lips back on his. Stiles was slightly more attentive this time around, and caught me as I placed my weight on him, arms wrapping around my body entirely and still not breaking from the kiss.

* * *

"And that's why you the natural log cancels the 'e,' got it?" I glanced up from pointing to Malia's homework to see her gaze wasn't even focused on me. Instead, it was focused on the unnecessary testosterone build-up that was occurring on the lacrosse field. I sighed before standing up and sitting down directly in front of her line of sight.

"I'm so sorry, June. I'm trying, I really am, it's just-"

"It's just what? You'd rather go jump one of those guys' bones than sit here and do math with me?" I quirked an eyebrow, shielding my feelings of hurt by deflecting with sarcasm.

"I'd jump Coach's bones if it meant getting out of sitting here and doing math," She replied and I blanched, nearly gagging. She turned to look to me. "I don't mean sitting here with you, it's just doing the math."

"Malia, you're doing everything correctly," I explained, pointing at her past homework scores, "But then you go back and erase everything, only to do it incorrectly."

"I just never feel like it's right," She mumbled, and I sighed, moving back to my original seat where all my notes were scattered. In writing down notes for Malia, I had unintentionally filled out three notebooks of material in hopes that she could use them to her advantage.

"You are right, and you need to stop beating yourself up over this stuff," I explained, flipping back a few pages. I noticed the green sticky notes were outweighed by the red sticky notes on the notebooks.

"I just need to accept that I will never ever advance any further than remedial math. It's just never gonna happen, I suck at it."

"You don't-" A lightbulb went off, "Malia, what do you think you don't suck at?"

"What?"

"What do you know you're good at?"

"Hunting, I'm good at sucking at math, I mean honestly I think I was better at being a coyote than I am at being human."

I sat up straighter, "Okay, then let's think about this in ways that will be easier and more personal to you. When you were a coyote, what did you do to prepare for the winter?"

Malia pondered for a moment, before answering, "I had to find enough food, build a shelter, stay near water, and make sure no one else came near my den."

I nodded eagerly, "Okay then, we're going to move math into several categories for your test."

"How?"

"Think of it this way: the test is the winter time, what you have to survive. How you survive it, is math."

"What do you mean?"

I moved the notes around so a green sticky note was showing, a yellow sticky note was showing, and so was a red sticky note, "For example, the red stickies are what we need to work on most, the most important. So I'd say, for now, the red sticky notes are the same as needing to find a reliable shelter during the winter, wouldn't you agree?"

Malia nodded, still a little confused. I pressed on, pointing my pen at the yellow stickies, "Now these, say they're still important, but not your number one priority. Say the yellow sticky notes are the same as you making sure you had more than enough food for the winter, okay?"

She could see where this was going, and nodded again.

"Lastly," I pointed to the green sticky notes, "This is something that is critical, but you almost always have no trouble doing in preparation for winter. So, say that green post-it's are the equivalent as staying near a good water source. There were plenty of streams in the preserve, I'm sure you had almost no problem."

"But what does this have to do with me passing the test?" She asked, still not quite on board.

I gestured between all the notebooks, "You need all the elements to pass the math test, just like you need all of those things to survive the winter. Red is the one you need to work on the most, just like finding a shelter is your number one priority. Just think of this not as a math test, but as you surviving the winter."

I could see Malia mull it over, when the next thing I know, she's tackled me in a hug. I would've been delighted had she not been slowly suffocating me in more ways then one. Her entire body weight was on top of mine, as well as her arms encircling my waist that were constricting me like a boa.

"Malia - honey - I can't - breathe," She quickly let me go and straightened up. I slowly sat up, ensuring that none of my organs had been rearranged or flattened, jumping when I heard Coach's whistle. I quickly grabbed up my backpack and pens before helping Malia gather up her notebooks and textbook.

"Thanks, June, you're honestly a lifesaver," She gushed, and I waved her off.

"It's nothing, Malia, I'm glad to help." I turned to see the lacrosse team hustle back to the locker rooms, "Don't forget, when you're studying with Lydia tonight, be sure to go over what we went over today, alright?" She nodded fervently, striding down the bleachers and back into the school.

I followed after her, but by the time I walked through the double doors, Malia was out of sight. Sighing, I walked over to my locker and dumped out a few unnecessary textbooks. Grabbing the notebook on my AP Biology notes, I doubled that with my math notebook and headed over to the boy's locker room.

I was just in time, too, for all the lacrosse team was filing out. Liam nearly bulldozed me to the ground in an effort to seemingly get away from everyone, and I waved to Kira as she walked down the opposite hallway from where I was.

"You're going to light up some light bulbs at Derek's, that's your idea of a date?" I whipped my head around to see Stiles and Scott putting backpacks on their shoulders and leaving the locker room. Stiles, seeing me, kissed my cheek and slid his hand into mine before turning back to Scott.

"No, we weren't just going to do that, I just thought it'd be a cool thing to do."

"Are you talking about yours and Kira's date?" I asked, "Because I think that sounds super cute."

"Well, we were going to watch a movie too," Scott added, blushing slightly at my cooing.

Stiles stopped mid-walk in the hallway, taking his backpack off of his shoulders, and unzipping it zealously. He pulled out a movie case and thrust it into Scott's arms.

"Finally, now you have zero excuse," He exasperated, zipping up his backpack and returning his hand to me.

"What is it?" Scott asked, opening the case.

"Star Wars: A New Hope," Stiles answered proudly, "It's digitally remastered, so you're really gonna love it."

"Why do you just carry that around in your backpack...?" I questioned, scrunching my eyebrows together. I didn't receive an answer though, for just as Stiles opened his mouth, the overhead bell rang, signaling class about to start. Scott and Stiles started walking ahead, but I yanked on Stiles' hand, stopping him and effectively stopping Scott.

"Here, Scott," I handed him the notebook, "Save us a seat in math, would you?"

"What is it?" He flicked through the notebook.

"It's just some stuff on AP Biology," I answered, shrugging, "The textbook was too wordy, so I kind of shortened it."

"You took notes on the _entire_ textbook?" Scott asked incredulously and I almost laughed.

"No, just the curriculum. Actually, most of that is from the Bozeman Science website. You should take a look at those videos, they're genius." Scott nodded, before walking away towards the math classroom.

"June, we've gotta go, we have class in a bit."

"Well hang on, I still have four minutes," Was all the explanation Stiles was given before I placed my lips on his. Smiling into the kiss, I thought of this morning, where it felt like we had all the time in the world.

Stiles got the memo and spun me around so that my back was up against the row of lockers. It took all I had not to audibly moan when I felt Stiles' hands dip down below the small of my back. My fingers slid up into his hair as our mouths opened and our tongues danced. I paused for a moment at the taste of spearmint. A lot of spearmint.

"Did you brush your teeth again after practice or something?" I asked him, and he flushed, scratching at the back of his neck.

"Uh - yeah. Yeah I accidentally got grass in my mouth after someone tackled me."

"Oh," I replied, before shrugging and placing my lips back on his. We resumed our former positions while I breathed out in between kisses, "Three minutes."

* * *

"What did you think the Reynolds Pamphlet was going to be like?" I laughed, glancing at my boyfriend currently sitting at his desk. I had a position on his bed, reading Ron Chernow's book on Rockefeller, and texting Malia and Lydia with pointers to help the former study better.

"I genuinely thought that it was like a pamphlet you get when someone hands one to you on the street. Just a little tiny one page thing explaining what he had done and that was it."

I shook my head, grinning, "Nope, back then you had to have the receipts. Not to mention he literally couldn't stop himself from writing down everything."

"Man, it's just like I'm seeing this man ruin his own life by doing this."

"Yeah, his poor wife, am I right?" I asked before I heard the sheriff's footsteps echo down the hall.

"Drop what you're doing. I'm taking you both out to dinner, whatever you want," Stilinski all but burst into Stiles' room. I glanced over at Stiles, and he looked at me confused, before turning his stare back up to his dad.

"Dad, I don't really think a man of your debts should be treating anyone to anything."

It almost looked like Stiles' dad was waiting for him to say something like that, for he pulled a sheet of paper out of the back of his pocket and handed it to Stiles. "Well, there is one debt we no longer have to worry about."

"What is that?"

"A letter of apology from Eichen House," My eyebrows shot up, "Apparently, they've decided to forgive our debts due to - uh - well, to you and Lydia almost getting murdered."

"I didn't even know they could do that," I exclaimed, trying to relieve the tension.

"They can do it, and they did it," He smiled over at me.

"I have never been so happy to have almost been murdered," Stiles mentioned, and I pursed my lips in sensitivity to the topic, but I smiled regardless.

"We're not out of the woods yet," Stilinski added, looking at me once more in something like gratitude, "But we're gonna be just fine. And at least for the moment, I can afford to take my son and his girlfriend out to dinner." Stiles gleefully threw his copy of the Reynolds Pamphlet to the side, and I slid my bookmark back into my book, securing my place before grabbing my phone and sitting up.

"June," I glanced up at the two Stilinski's, "What do you like to eat?"

"Svíčková," I almost groaned at the thought. They both stared blankly at me before Stiles rounded to his dad.

"Pizza, she likes pizza," Stiles smiled at me, and I smiled at his dad, who looked slightly confused. He nodded and they both walked out of the room, Stiles waiting for me by his door.

* * *

"I genuinely think that you would like it, I mean, you're Polish. It's all hearty food and you love good food."

"June, we've been having this conversation since last night. I'm not trying your sheeshko - whatever it's called."

"Svíčková," I corrected, "And I don't care if you don't like it, the point is, you're trying it. There is a good Czech restaurant in Sacramento and I am going to take you there soon."

"You mean after we deal with Kate, who is still around somewhere?" Stiles quirked his eyebrow, holding the door to the school open for me. Walking inside, I felt my phone beep, and saw that it was Lydia texting me in explanation that she thinks something is going on with Deaton. I texted her back, asking if it was one of her premonitions, and if Scott could double check with her.

"Hey, have you seen Scott since his date last night?" I asked Stiles as we stopped at his locker. He asked me to hold his gym bag while he placed his backpack into the locker. I nearly toppled over at the unexpected weight of the bag, but still maintained a look of worry.

"No, why?"

"It's just, it's weird," I explained, handing the bag back to him, and walking with him down the hallway, "He was supposed to text me after his date about any questions he had on the biology notes I gave him. We were gonna set up a time to go into this."

"So Scott didn't text you back. Don't take it personal, he's not the best at replying to those."

I shook my head, feeling something wrong in my gut, and worried that Stiles wasn't as worried as I was, "I don't think you get it. Scott is really serious about becoming a veterinarian, and is basically using all his spare time in reading up on biology courses," Stiles didn't seem to be too invested in what I was saying, so I hastily grabbed on to his arm and made him face me. "Hey, I'm serious. Something's not right, Stiles."

"Look, June, I didn't see him last night, but I did get a text from him this morning. He said he's gonna be a little late. Plus, while he's serious about becoming a veterinarian, he's also serious about lacrosse. He's gonna turn up, June. I've gotta go change, please try not to worry," He placed a kiss on my lips, "I love you."

I huffed, "I love you."

He could see I still wasn't biting, "Hey," He put his hands on my face, "Did I mention you look great in a jersey?" I grinned, looking down at the twenty-four emblazoned across my maroon shirt. Looking back up at him, I could see his eyes were twinkling. He kissed me again, a little bit more of a substantial kiss than the last, and turned to walk to the locker room. Sighing, I turned around to head to the bleachers.

As I did so, I nearly collided with the freshman who had been avoiding all of us like the plague. I had grown accustomed to his fleeting eyes and nervous stature over the past couple of days, but what did throw me for a loop was the fact that he was looking me directly in the eye. His blue eyes hadn't met my own for quite some time, and it caught me off guard.

"Liam, what-?"

"Have you seen Scott?"

"What, no, I haven't, why?"

His eyes flickered with something I couldn't quite put my finger on, before they were barricaded by a slightly guarded facade, "Uh - nothing." I quirked an eyebrow, and he caved, "It's just that we're playing Devenford Prep again, and I wanted some pointers. I stopped by his house, but he wasn't there, and neither was his mom."

I nodded, masking my suspicion, "Melissa had the late shift last night with your dad, I think." That did nothing to calm his jitters, "Hey, look. Stiles said something about a text, why don't you go and ask him?" Liam quickly nodded and skirted around me. I turned around to watch his retreating figure make his way after my boyfriend. I sighed heavily, my worry increasing for my friend and his girlfriend with every footstep as I made my way out to the lacrosse field.

* * *

I trailed behind the Sheriff Stilinski and Malia, occupied with my phone. It was the sixth time in a row that I had tried, and failed, to contact Scott. Groaning in frustration, I put my phone in my back pocket, sitting next to the sheriff, Malia on his left. Perking up, I saw Stiles sit next to Liam almost directly in front of us, and I got up, not being able to just sit and do nothing.

"I've been practicing," I heard him say, "Let me tell you something. I've been getting good. Really good."

I slid my arms around his neck, "Hey."

I could see him smile from my vantage point, "Hey, June."

"Good luck out there."

"He doesn't need it," Liam interjected, "He's apparently getting good."

I could hear Stiles mutter something along the lines of "Little runt," before turning around to face me.

"Did you call Scott?" I asked, my hands moving to his neck, and he placed his hands on my arms, rubbing up and down in a comforting manner.

"I just texted him, and I called him right before practice. He'll be here, don't worry."

"It sounds like you're trying to comfort more than just me," I chided, before leaning in closer, "I love you. Be careful out there."

"June, it's lacrosse, it can get pretty violent."

Kissing him quickly, I replied, "All the same, it's not my favorite thing to do to watch you get tackled to the ground."

I still had to watch Stiles get tackled to the ground. I winced in sympathy as three players took him head-on, leaving him in the dust. This was after his many failed attempts at actually playing lacrosse.

"Are you sure he won the championship last year?" I asked, leaning over to the sheriff, who was wincing after Stiles took another big hit.

"I'm not sure if he's just having an off game, or if my son was replaced with someone who is even more of a hyperactive spaz."

I hummed in agreement, "Well, we both know that that's not possible, he's the most spastic person out there."

Half time rolled around, and unsurprisingly, Beacon Hills was trailing Devenford Prep by three. I saw Liam and Stiles plop back on to the bench, and I figured now was as good a time as any to check my phone to see if Scott was in fact still with us and was doing just fine.

When I received no such notification, I put my phone away and looked up. Just in time, too, for Stiles was quickly advancing towards the three of us.

Almost inaudibly, Stiles explained what was going on to his dad. I knew now wasn't the time to go and gloat in his face that I was right about Scott, but I also wasn't going to sit and do nothing now that we were going to go and look for him.

"Do you want me to stay here in case he shows up?" Malia asked, as I stood up with Stilinski.

"Yes," Stiles agreed, and I tapped Malia on the shoulder.

"Keep an eye on him, too," I nodded in Liam's direction, whose back was facing us. "He might need a little extra support." After Malia agreed, Stiles placed a hand to the small of my back, and guided me to the parking lot. The sheriff agreed to follow behind us wherever we decided we were going, and I climbed into the passenger seat of Stiles' jeep while he got situated behind the wheel.

"Okay, if I were Scott, where would I be...?" He trailed off and I rolled my eyes.

"Let's not think about this like a game of hide-and-seek, alright?"

"Well then, where do we start?"

"You're the detective, Stiles, where do you think we should start?"

I saw Stiles flush in appreciation at my comment before his eyes lit up in realization, "We start with the last place he was known to be for sure."

"Which is what?" I asked, egging him on.

"Derek's."

After a change of clothes and a short drive, Stiles, his dad, and I all piled up and made our way up to Derek's loft. Inside was Derek and Braeden, glancing around at broken glass and furniture. The large window at the center of the room had a large hole through it, allowing for a cool breeze to dance across our skin. Stumbling for a moment, my vision was replaced with that of an iron door, and when my gaze fell down to my feet, all that I was standing on was a pile of bones.

"June," I was gently shaken by Stiles, who wore a look of concern. I shrugged it off, nodding my head at Derek to ask what had happened.

"What the hell happened?"

"It was supposed to be a date," Derek explained.

"They were both here?" Stilinski tried to confirm, and I could already tell he was throwing together a search party as we spoke.

"And they're both gone," Braeden answered softly, crossing her arms in a defensive manner. As soon as she said it, my phone started vibrating loudly. I jumped, and quickly yanked it out of my back pocket, hoping it was Scott with a satisfactory explanation as to why he tore up Derek's loft, but that he was okay.

"Scott?"

"No," Lydia replied, "But Scott's been taken."

"Yeah, we know," I countered, glancing around at all the destruction. "Scott and Kira have been taken, we just don't know where."

"Mexico," I heard an new voice answer, surprising me when I head the soft lull of Deaton's tone, "And if you want to save his life, that's where you're going too."

My eyes widened as I hung up the phone, and my gaze fell to Derek. Fear creeped up my spine, thinking of how the effects of reversing his age, if only temporarily, were still affecting him. How once Kate was finished with him, it seemed to have a grim outlook. I placed my phone back in my pocket.

"Well?" Stiles asked expectantly from beside me, "Where are we going?"

"Back," I whispered before clearing my throat. "We're going back to church."

 _ **Svíčková is pronounced like Sheesh-ko-vah. Elongating the ah sound at the end. It's an incredible Czech dish that I had over when I was studying abroad.**_


	21. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19: Operation: Save Scott McCall, the Reboot You Didn't See Coming**

I leaned against my car, arms crossed, my foot tapping in an impatient manner. Every time I stared at the ground, I would see the same thing: Kira's shoes, and bones, human bones. I whipped my gaze up to the doors of the sheriff's station I was waiting outside of and sighed in relief when I saw my boyfriend briskly walk towards me. My relief was short lived, however, for anxiety and frustration were written all over his face.

"How'd he take it?" I asked him, even though I was fairly sure I knew the answer already.

"Not well," Stiles replied, climbing into my car with me, "He wouldn't even let me have a gun."

"That's not surprising," I scoffed, and came face-to-face with a disbelieving boyfriend, "I love you, but you are not mature enough for a gun yet." It was his turn to scoff as I started the car. "What else did he say?"

Fastening his seatbelt, he started straight out the window, "He wants to put out an all-points, talk through the wheels of bureaucracy before even thinking about going down there. It's just bullshit, I know what's going on. He's just skeptical because some guy with a third eye said that Scott's in trouble. I mean, can you believe that?"

I smiled, driving back home, "I mean, your dad has yet to see all that you have. His skepticism is probably what keeps him sane." Stiles mumbled in response.

I reached over and grabbed his hand, lacing my fingers in between his in a comforting manner. Looking over at him, I sighed, "So then what now?"

"With my dad out of the picture, I don't know. How am I supposed to get down to Mexico?"

I shrugged, pursing my lips, "We could always go camping." Stiles' head whipped over to me, a mixture of love coupled with a devious glint that I couldn't help but smile at alight in his eyes. He pulled out his phone, and started texting everyone what I was assuming was his plan.

We ended up at Scott's house, after Malia sent a text to Stiles saying she'd help us regardless of what we did. Stiles raced into Scott's room, Malia and I right behind, and started digging around his things. He reached for the closet, pulling at the shirts that Scott seemed to wear most often.

"Here, try that," Stiles threw a pair of shorts over to Malia, and she buried her face into them, inhaling deeply.

"Fabric softener," She denied, shaking her head. Stiles stepped away from the closet, eyes darting around, until his face lit up in recognition. He stumbled over to the doorway leading into Scott's bathroom, and his hands found the clothes hamper. He started digging through it hastily while I sat on Scott's bed.

Stiles came back into the bedroom, wielding a pair of boxers in his hands. Holding them out for Malia, he sighed when she crinkled her nose, "Remember, Scott's life is on the line."

I glanced around, and cleared my throat quietly. Malia turned back to face me, and I nodded my head over to Scott's pillow. Her eyes shone with gratitude, and she walked over to pick up the pillow that would most definitely have his scent on it.

"Yeah, that works too," Stiles agreed, immediately discarding his best friend's underwear. Together, we all left the bedroom and headed back downstairs into the McCall's kitchen. We were prepared to leave when we discovered that we weren't actually alone. At the dining room table sat Liam, standing up when he saw us round the corner.

"Oh, Liam go home. You're not coming with us," Stiles chided, still making his way to the back door that we were planning to exit out of.

"Why not?"

"Because it's a full moon," I explained, walking past him, "And none of us feel like driving all the way down to Mexico just to have you rip our throats out."

"You can lock me up, right?" Why he was so persistent after nearly two weeks of ignoring all of us was beyond me. "Chain me down to the back seat or something."

"You tore through the last chains, remember?" Malia argued.

"Yeah, we would have to freeze you in carbonite to get you down there," Stiles agreed.

Liam, as ignorant as ever, nodded in determination, "Okay, then where do we get carbonite?"

Both Stiles and myself squinted our eyes in frustration and disbelief, "Oh my god," I muttered, "You really are Scott's beta."

"Seriously, you haven't seen it either?" Stiles asked, and Liam just shrugged in cluelessness. Stiles, Malia, and I all turned to walk out the door.

"Wait!" Liam rounded to face us again, still not giving up, "What if we put me in the trunk?"

"You'd get out of that, too," Malia assured him, ebbing away at his hope.

"Liam," Stiles tried again, "You've been a werewolf all of five minutes. You don't have to do this."

"I know I don't, but I want to." His relentlessness was growing on me, "There's gotta be bigger chains, a bigger trunk, or something. There has to be."

Stiles was deep in thought, when he finally spoke, "Maybe there is."

* * *

I was the first in the warehouse, and as I waited for the rest of my friends to show up, I texted Lydia once more. She was still not answering me, and my worry was growing increasingly. Finally, Malia, Stiles, and Liam pulled in, and quickly following were Derek and Peter, and finally, Braeden, driving a government issued van large enough to hold a raging werewolf.

"How'd you get a prison transport van?" Stiles asked her as she hopped out.

"I'm a US Marshall," She replied, shrugging noncommittally.

"Oh - I - I just thought that was like a cover," Stiles wrung his hands as Braeden blankly stared at him. Derek and Peter hopped out of the car, slamming the doors, and turning our attention to them.

"Are we really bringing him?" Derek asked, gesturing to Liam.

"Are we really bringing _him_?" Stiles retorted, motioning towards the suspicious former alpha.

"We're bringing everyone that we can," Peter defended himself, and at the same time talking down to Stiles. "And considering Scott and Kira were taken the night before a full moon, we should probably get going."

"What's that mean?" Malia questioned.

"If Kate took Scott back to the temple that she took Derek, how do we know that she's not planning to do the same thing to him?"

"She wants to make him younger?" Liam asked dubiously.

"Or take him back to when he wasn't a werewolf," Derek concluded.

"A werewolf can't steal a true alpha's power," Peter elaborated, "But maybe, a Nagual jaguar with the power of Tezcatlipoca behind her... Maybe she can." He dramatically paused for that information to sink in, "So, if everyone is sufficiently freaked out, I say we get going."

"We can't," I argued, and everyone faced me, "Not without Lydia." I paused when Derek looked confused, "She's supposed to meet us from the school."

Stiles turned to me, "Is she still not answering?" I shook my head in worry.

"I'm starting to think this isn't a coincidence," I mentioned, and he grabbed my hand.

"Let me try," Was all he said before he dug out his cellphone, no doubt dialing Lydia's number. I watched on in concern as he paced back and forth, not receiving any answer.

"What's she doing at the school anyway?" Derek asked me, and I turned around to meet his gaze.

"We got Kira's sword, but we need something with a stronger scent," As if to back up my reasoning, Malia held out Kira's sword. "Lydia went to get a jacket out of her locker." I heard Stiles huff in frustration. Moving my gaze back over to him, I watched him hang up his phone in defeat.

"Nothing," He informed us, shoving his phone back into his pocket.

"If she has a car, she can catch up to us," Braeden reminded us, but I shook my head.

"That's a good point, we'll call her from the road," Derek agreed, but I stepped forward.

"No, what if something happened to her? What if she's in trouble?"

"Fine. You stay, you find her," Peter lectured, "We're gonna go on without you."

I sneered Peter's way, then looked back to Stiles. He shared the same concern as me, but our stare off was interrupted by Liam. "I could call Mason," He offered, "He has a study group at school, maybe he could look for her."

Stiles nodded, "That's a fair point," Liam whipped out his cell phone and called his best friend. My mouth opened in disbelief, and Stiles took note. "Mason can call us from the road, but we have to get going."

"Or Mason could be walking into the same situation as Lydia," I scolded in a hushed whisper. "Not to mention, he would have no idea what he was walking into."

"He can figure it out," Stiles argued back, but I shook my head adamantly.

"This isn't just about Mason," I explained, "What if Lydia is somehow being prevented from coming with us because she's Lydia?"

"You mean because she's a banshee?" I nodded.

"If something is keeping her here, do you really think Mason could take care of it?" Stiles was beginning to see my point.

"What should we do?"

"Let me go see-"

Stiles shook his head, "No. No way, what if it's as dangerous as you think it is?"

I huffed, "I'd be better equipped to help Lydia than Mason."

Stiles stared into my eyes, "You're not coming with us, are you?"

I placed a long and comforting kiss onto his lips, "You go save your best friend, I'm going to save mine." He nodded, kissing me one last time before turning to face the others. I myself turned to face Liam, who suddenly looked very uncomfortable.

"If my boyfriend comes home with so much as a scratch, and it's your fault," I warned, "I'll end you." Liam shifted on his feet, avoiding my gaze, but nodding nonetheless. I pat his shoulder, "You're going to be just fine."

"Are we done with the sentiments? Or do we need an extra thirty minutes?" Peter drawled, and I scowled at him. I turned to Malia, whose gaze was uncertain.

"Don't talk to him in the car, okay? Play the music loud, really loud." She nodded and I hugged her goodbye. Staring off at Stiles one last time, I hopped back into my car, and sped off to the school.

By the time I had arrived, it was already dark. I parked next to Lydia's car, which sat in the otherwise vacant parking lot. I climbed out, and checked all four windows on the blue Toyota. Seeing no signs of life, I made my way up to the student doors. Yanking on them, I noticed how they were locked. Focusing my hands at the door handles, I concentrated on the lock mechanism, imagining it turning until finally, I heard a satisfying click.

Rushing through the hallways, I briskly made my way over to where Kira's locker was, figuring that would be a good place to start. Opening her locker, I noticed her jacket was missing. Slowly turning around, I locked my gaze on the stairs that were catty corner to where I was standing. Squinting through the dark, I saw Kira's jacket, as well as a backpack and what looked to be two cell phones.

Slowly, I walked over to the pile on the stairs, assuming that the backpack belonged to Mason. I recognized Lydia's cell phone, and made to pick it up. My fingers grazed the surface when my cell phone started ringing, sending me nearly jumping out of my skin. I pulled it out of my pocket and looked at the screen, only to be met with my boyfriend's dopey smile. I was about to answer when from almost directly behind me, I heard a low, menacing growl coupled with the sound of bones rattling.

"Oh, shit," Was all I managed to whisper before I felt a sharp force collide with my head. I didn't even feel myself connect to the ground, I was knocked into unconsciousness so quickly.

{+}

Kira was perched against a wall, bleeding and cold and crying. She hated herself for crying, for feeling utterly useless when she knew her friends would need to understand what was going on. She placed that burden upon her shoulders as soon as her eyes landed on Scott's tattoo, and his cold, lifeless eyes under the skull mask he now wore. Every fibre of her being was screaming at her to get up, to run and fight, but they were dampened by the tears that so easily escaped.

" _It's alright to cry_ ," Her mother's voice echoed in her head, " _It's no measure of your strength_."

"But I'm not strong," Kira disagreed, the tears coming more easily than before, "I need to get up. I need to tell them..."

" _How do you know you can't?_ " Noshiko gently challenged.

"Because I'm not healing," Kira didn't care at this point whether or not she was talking to herself, her mother felt too real to her. If she focused hard enough, she could see her silhouette out of the corner of her vision. "You told me why I never get sick. And you said I'd learn to heal." At this point, Kira simply wanted to give up, to close her eyes and sleep.

" _Then learn_ ," Her mother stated simply.

The kitsune shook her head in defeat, "I can't. I don't know how. How to start. Or what to do..." She was once again taken over by sobs.

" _I told you once that foxes and wolves tend not to get along. But they are similar creatures, aren't they? You've seen wolves heal. How do they do it?_ " Kira's vision faltered, and her head nodded forward, " _Kira,_ " She brought her head back, focusing on her mother's words, " _How do they trigger it?_ "

A light bulb went off, "Pain," She continued to breathe heavily, but with newly found determination, "With pain." Kira begrudgingly admitted to herself that despite the pain she was already enduring, she would have to come up with some more. Glancing at her surroundings, Kira noticed a wall of stone. Figuring that would have to do, she mustered up all the courage and remaining strength she could find, before slamming her fist into the wall.

She did this multiple times, each time she felt her strength return to her, be it from adrenaline or sheer force of will, she wasn't sure. She stopped when she heard a large amount of debris crumble to the ground. Running her hands over it, she picked up what she felt was the largest, and sharpest bit of stone she would get.

Kira held the rock between her fingers, squeezing as tightly as possible. She cried out in pain as she began to feel the edges sink in to her skin, drawing fresh blood. Ignoring her body's plea to stop, she kept going, and relished in the pain that she felt. Kira's body ignited with a kind of warmth that she didn't think she could ever feel, and pressed on. Her eyes turned vivid orange, and her wounds began to heal themselves. Now all that was left to do was to find her friends, who were no doubt already on their way, and warn them about Scott.

{+}

I shuddered when I felt a soft hand on my face. Flinching in surprise, my eyes flew open and I lurched away from whoever was touching me. Blinking out the dots in my vision, I was immediately overcome with a stabbing pain to the back of my head. Reaching around to touch the source of the pain, I winced, barely able to brush my fingers against it. I brought my fingers back to my line of vision, and sighed when I saw flakes of dried blood.

"June!" I jumped, trying to find the source of whoever was calling out to me. To my left stood Mason, a trickle of blood running down his forehead, and to my right was Lydia, looking shaken but for the most part untouched.

"Lyds," I sighed in relief, wrapping her up in my arms. She hugged me back just as tightly before letting me go, worry dancing across her features.

"Are you okay?" She asked me, and I nodded, staring around, trying to gage my surroundings. Based on the dim lighting coupled with the shelving containing extra school supplies, I concluded we were in the basement of the school. Standing up, I still glanced around, clutching at the back of my head.

"That thing sure packs a wallop," I muttered, and Lydia smiled briefly.

"Maybe it just really hated your outfit," I glanced down at my jeans and tee shirt before rolling my eyes.

"Lydia, I swear to god-"

"I don't know if you guys noticed, but there was this guy," Mason interrupted, sufficiently freaked out, "Huge. Really huge. He - he had a skull on his face."

"I know," Lydia replied, "I saw it too."

"And my phone's gone," Mason mentioned, searching through his pockets.

"I think that's kind of the point," I whispered, searching my pockets for a phone that wasn't there.

"Okay well - why - what's he gonna do to us?"

"I don't know," Lydia answered earnestly, "But it definitely doesn't want us to leave."

"Lydia, why do you keep saying 'it'?" Before either of us could answer him, the same low growl emitted from down the hallway. The three of us peered around the corner, not seeing anything, but feeling the berserker's presence.

"What is that thing?"

I shook my head, glancing at Lydia, "Not human."

{+}

Braeden was struggling to keep the van on the dirt road. Every time Liam tugged or yanked at the chains keeping him seated, the vehicle would swerve dramatically.

"Liam, you with me?" Derek asked, making sure that he was clutching on the the cheap piece of wood with the triskele carved into it like it was his savior. "We have a mantra that we use. You repeat it, you focus on the words. It's like meditating, you say the words until you feel control coming back to you."

Liam was sweating profusely, and his claws were nearly digging into his hands. Stiles wasn't entirely sure that this plan was going to have much effect, but for the most part he stayed silent. Liam was grasping onto every word Derek said like it was gospel, and he panted out, "Okay, okay, okay! What are the words?"

"Okay, look at the triskelion. See the symbol? I have a tattoo on my back, it's the same thing. Each spiral means something."

Stiles stole a glance over at Derek, realizing where this was headed. "Alpha, beta, omega," He murmured, and Derek nodded.

"It represents the idea that we can rise to one and fall back to another. Betas can become alphas."

"Alphas can become betas," Stiles interjected, speaking from the experience of the werewolf sitting next to him.

"Can alphas become omegas?" Liam moaned out, still struggling to grasp any semblance of humanity within him. Derek simply nodded.

With a level tone, Derek continued his instruction, "All you have to do is say the three words. And with each one, you tell yourself you're getting calmer, more in control. Go ahead."

"Alpha, beta-" Liam spat out in rapid succession.

"Slower," Derek warned, and Liam tried again.

"Alpha... Beta... Omega..." He groaned in pain, "Alpha... Beta... Omega..."

"Good, say it again. Remember, every time you say the words, you're getting calmer."

"Alpha... Beta..." Stiles crawled back onto his seat, hearing the shift in Liam's voice that could only mean trouble. "Omega."

"Say it again."

"Derek, I don't think that powerful talisman of self-control is working," Stiles cautioned, and that seemed to be the final straw that broke the camel's back. Liam stopped repeating the mantra, and began growling at the two of them. He abruptly stood up, tugging on the chains that bound him to his spot.

"Liam!" Derek yelled, and the van swerved considerably. Liam was finally able to break free of one of the handcuffs, and he started aimlessly clawing at Derek's face. Stiles, wide-eyed, watched as a very mortal Derek wrestled with a new werewolf.

"Derek," Braeden called out in an effort to tell everyone in the backseat to get a grip of themselves.

"Yeah, I think we're gonna need to go a little faster!" Stiles yelled out to Braeden, struggling to be heard over Liam's growls and roars.

"Keep going," Derek ordered, and the worry washed off of Braeden's face as she whipped back around, sending the notch on the speedometer a little higher up.

"Liam," Derek yelled once more, right after Liam managed to break through his other handcuff. There was virtually nothing stopping him from ripping everyone in the back seat to shreds, save for Derek's adrenaline-fueled strength.

"We're almost there," Braeden assured before glancing up at the sky that revealed the bright stars and the full moon.

"Keep focus," Stiles yelled, trying to hold onto Liam as well, though not to much effect. He turned back to the other werewolf, "Derek, I don't think alpha, beta, omega is resonating with him."

Derek managed to roll his eyes, despite the situation, "Oh, do you know any other mantras?"

The first thing that came to mind for Stiles was Elvis Presley, and how June always seemed to listen to it whenever she was truly upset. He shook his head clear of any thoughts of June, and how she wasn't answering any of his calls. His mind thought of another werewolf, who was poisoned by Garrett the night of the lacrosse game. How he and June carried him to the clinic, and he started muttering something under his breath.

"Yeah," Stiles finally said, "Yeah, I do. "Liam, Liam. What three things cannot long be hidden?" Liam glanced over at him, eyes still shining gold. He chose to ignore Stiles and roared once again at Derek.

"Liam!" Stiles tried again, attempting to gain his full focus. "Liam, look at me. What three things cannot long be hidden? What three things."

Liam seemed to register that they were still attempting to help him, "The sun... The moon... The truth."

"That's it, say it again," Stiles goaded, relieved when he felt Liam draw back slightly.

"The sun... The moon... The truth..."

"Derek?" Braeden called out, feeling control of the van come back to her.

Derek looked up at her in slight disbelief, "We're okay."

"The sun... The moon... The truth..." Liam's fangs and claws were finally sheathed, and his features returned to that of his human stance. He glanced up at the still weary passengers seated across from him. They all felt the van slowly cruise to a stop.

"I can't believe I did it," Liam went on, "You know for a moment there, I thought I was gonna rip the two of you apart."

Stiles nodded, eyes wide, "Yeah, that would've made for an awkward ride home. So thanks."

"Think you can bring the same level of control and strength inside La Iglesia?"

As if to answer Derek's question, Liam whipped out his claws on the first try.

"Alright, we might actually be able to do this," Stiles muttered. As optimistic as he was, he spoke to soon, for disaster struck before they could even get out of the van.

{+}

Lydia, Mason, and I were leaning up against the wall, hiding out of sight from the rest of the hallway. Quietly panting, we listened to every sound in the hallway, wondering if the berserker was still just a few paces away.

"I don't hear it," Lydia mentioned, and I nodded.

Mason looked over to the both of us, and I motioned for us to leave, "Come on."

"No, no," He argued, "There's only one way out on this side of the basement."

"I know," Lydia whispered, "But if we don't get out of here, someone's going to die."

"How do you know that?" Mason furrowed his eyebrows.

"She just does," I winced as my vision changed my surroundings, taking me to a tomb filled with cobwebs, "The same way I know they got to La Iglesia."

"The church?" Mason questioned, and I shook my head.

"We have to at least see if he's blocking the exit," Lydia ushered.

Mason sighed, knowing she was right. Bravely, he bit down on his lip, and leaned forward to the hallway. He peered around the corner, and we all heard the signs of heavy footsteps simultaneously as Mason lurched backwards to our hiding place.

"Yeah. Yeah, he's blocking it."

I flinched, my head throbbing in pain, and the next time I opened my eyes, I saw Kira, staring wide-eyed at me.

 _"It's Scott. Stiles, it's Scott," Realizing that I wasn't in fact in Mexico, I must've been in Stiles' head._

 _"What do you mean?" I heard him ask._

 _"The berserker," She answered, still leaning against the wall, "It's him. Kate did it."_

 _I could feel Stiles' growing panic, "What are you talking about?"_

 _"She made him into one of them," She clarified, "I don't know how, but it's him. And if they don't know it, they could kill him."_

 _"That's why Lydia's not here," I heard Stiles conclude, "They won't know they're killing Scott."_

"June!" I shook my head, and was faced with the basement wall once again. Eyes wide, I rounded to Lydia.

"We need to get out of here, now," I insisted, and simply seeing the fear on my face was enough to persuade Lydia and Mason. Glancing around, Lydia walked over to a bin containing two baseball bats. Following behind her, Mason and I gave each other a confused glance.

"Are you serious?"

"Very," She muttered, gripping onto one of the handles and handing the other to Mason.

"A baseball bat? Against that guy? Or thing, or whatever it is?"

"Our friends are in trouble," I lectured.

"And so is Liam, your best friend," Lydia reminded him, and that seemed to sway Mason's thought. "They need me, I'm going for it. And yes, with a baseball bat."

"What about June?" He asked.

"She doesn't need a one," Lydia confirmed, and Mason stared at me bewilderedly. I simply shrugged in agreement. Lydia and I advanced towards the berserker that was seemingly waiting for us, but not before we were startled by a pubescent battle cry. Mason came full speed, running at the monster in front of us. Lydia and I thought it best to go right behind him. They started playing Whac-A-Berserker with the baseball bats, and I attempted to magically tear off some of the bones to reveal any weak spots.

One after the other, the berserker struck us out, sending us flying backwards to where we were originally being held. Wincing in pain as I slid back, I glanced up at the angered creature.

"I thought you said it wanted to keep us here, not hurt us." My eyes widened at the growling berserker.

"I think it changed its mind," Lydia shrieked, and I hastily got up to protect the two of them. The berserker walked towards us, but not before he was interrupted.

"Excuse me," I heard from down the hallway, past the berserker. Looking around it, I saw Sheriff Stilinski throw something of considerable size at the berserker. "Catch."

As soon as it caught it, I noticed what it was holding: a terribly large grenade of sorts. I watched Stilinski dive around a corner, and I whirled around to my friends.

"Get back!" I yelled, telekinetically shoving Lydia and Mason around the corner, out of harm's way. Facing back towards the monster, I watched as the grenade exploded. Throwing up a shield, I felt the force collide with my protection, sending me sliding back into the wall.

After all was said and done, I lowered my shield, and hit the sides of my ears in attempt to rid them of the horrendous ringing. I felt someone grab my hand, and recognized Lydia's relieved face as she hugged me once again. I hugged her back tightly, breathing deeply in content that we were finally safe. I nodded at Mason, who looked incredibly bewildered that I was still somehow alive, and I walked over to the sheriff. I watched as he picked up the fractured skull that rest in the remnants of the berserker.

"You three okay?" He asked us and we nodded.

"It was after me," Lydia couldn't seem to take her eyes off of the skull. "It wanted me to stay in Beacon Hills."

"I think this is all some sort of distraction," I agreed.

"Because you knew they're trying to kill someone," The sheriff concluded, staring at Lydia. We shared a glance before looking back at Stiles' dad.

"Kill who?" Mason asked, outside the circle of understanding.

"Scott," Lydia answered.

"Come on," I motioned towards the exit, "I think I have a few heal - things in my car that'll make us feel better," I was still slightly weary of Mason, but figured we should all get out of here quickly. We hobbled up to the main area of the school, grabbing our things, our cell phones, and hopefully our sanity before we left the school altogether.

Glancing at the parking lot, I noticed the sheriff parked right next to my car, and how the sun was slowly rising in the sky. I gathered my keys and unlocked the door, taking out three healing potions and handing them off to Mason and Lydia, keeping one for myself. Lydia and I took them immediately, savoring the spearmint taste. Looking over to Mason, he seemed a bit skeptical.

"What is this supposed to be?" He asked me, and I glanced slightly nervously over to Lydia and the sheriff.

"Uh - herbal tea?" I slowly replied, and he raised a brow at me in suspicion. "It's a Himalayan recipe, and - um - it helps your body supposedly heal faster." When he didn't reply, I spat out, "I found it on Pinterest."

"And you just keep vials of it in your car?"

"It also boosts metabolism," I improvised, "So I drink it with my food." Mason was seemingly too tired to inquire further, for he downed the liquid quickly, shuddering at the strong spearmint flavor.

Sheriff Stilinski's phone rang immediately after, and he quickly brought it up to his ear. "Hello?" His entire body sagged in relief when whoever was on the other side of the phone call replied. "Come straight here, you got that? I'm still planning on hobbling you as soon as you're in my sights." His eyes found mine, "She's fine. They're all safe. Just get back here as soon as possible please." He hung up the phone and nodded over to me.

"Stiles?"

"Yeah, apparently Scott's fine. Peter apparently helped Kate with everything and tried to kill him, but he's fine. They're all okay." I sighed out in relief, rubbing a hand to the back of my neck.

"Wow, this Himalayan stuff works fast," Mason pointed out, and I laughed out. Lydia pat him on the shoulder and gestured to her car, "Come on, I'll take you home." She gave me one last hug before climbing in the driver's side of her Toyota. I sighed when they pulled away, facing Stiles' dad once again.

"What now?" I asked him and he shrugged.

"I was going to wait for Stiles back at the station, he said he would meet me there. Would you like to join me?" I gave him a small smile, nodding my head.

"I will meet you there."

* * *

I gave up pacing the room, deciding to sit next to the sheriff on his desk. We spoke quietly to one another in an effort to fill the silence, but we were still a little tense. Six o'clock rolled around, and still no sign of anybody.

It wasn't until about half past seven did Stiles and Malia finally come through the station doors. Stilinski and I both perked up in happiness, and Stiles and Malia came barreling into the office. Deciding that his dad took precedence, I ran over to Malia and engulfed her in a large hug. She was quick to reciprocate, squeezing me tightly and nearly cracking a rib. I didn't mind, for just knowing she was alright. She only let go when I felt a pair of hands grab onto my waist.

Spinning me around, Stiles steadied me by placing his lips onto mine. I wrapped my arms around him and pulled him closer to me, even though I didn't think it was possible. Sparing his dad the awkwardness of watching his son make out with a girl, I broke the kiss and opted for pulling Stiles even closer, and he quickly hugged me back.

"I love you," He whispered, and I smiled.

"I love you too."

"You smell terrible," I laughed at his comment, and I felt his shoulders shake with laughter as well.

"Right back at you."

"I'm just so glad you're all safe," The sheriff muttered, smiling at the three of us. "Hey, what do you say we get out of here, get something to eat?"

"Great, I'm starving," Stiles agreed, raising his fist in the air.

"Okay," The sheriff announced, placing his hand on my back and leading Malia and I out of the office. I heard a clatter, and spun around to see Stiles handcuffed to the desk.

"Yo, Daddy?" Stiles asked in a joking manner, but quickly realized his dad was not kidding.

"Malia, what's your favorite food?" Before she could spit out something like deer, I mouthed to her, and she spoke out what I said.

"Uh - pizza."

"Hey, Dad?" Sparing one last glance at Stiles, I shrugged and walked out with the sheriff. Behind me, I heard my boyfriend yell out, "Bring me back a slice?"

* * *

"AP Biology, huh?" Stiles was glancing over the notes I was currently explaining to Scott. Scott nodded, and I followed suit, like a proud mama bear.

"Yeah, he's trying to get into UC Davis, so I figure a little extra tutoring might help him for when he takes the class next year," I confirmed, adjusting my seat in Scott's kitchen.

"If I can handle it, I mean this seems like pretty complicated stuff," Scott seemed slightly panicked, but I pat his shoulder.

"Hey, if you can break free from a berserker, then you should have no problem with this," I assured him, trying my best to be supportive.

"But why now? It's the middle of March," Stiles tried again.

"What with me going to Paris with Lydia next week, Ginny being discharged from the hospital the week after, the make-up SAT that you still have to do, and then summer break, I figured starting a little early might be of some benefit," I explained and Stiles nodded.

"However, it is seven thirty," Scott argued, "We've been at this nearly all day."

"Is it?"

"Hello? Why do you think I'm here?" Stiles asked, gesturing towards himself, "Our movie starts in like a half hour."

"Oh," I shrugged, not even realizing the time, "Well alright then, do you think you've got it from here, Scott?"

"I should be able to manage. I'm watching a few Bozeman videos and then going to bed." I nodded in approval and pat him on the back. Gathering up all my stuff, I bid Scott farewell, and let Stiles guide me out of the McCall house.

"So..." Stiles asked, "Is there any way we can back out of this movie?"

I scoffed, walking down the porch steps, "You liked the first one! And this one got pretty good reviews."

"Right, but like I don't understand why they needed to follow up with the Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, it just seems a bit much."

"It has Dame Judy Dench and Bill Nighy, no way it's too much."

Stiles and I bickered all the way to the movie theater, him buying the tickets, and me buying the popcorn and drinks, as per usual. We quarreled all the way until the trailers came on, and we settled into a comfortable silence. I wouldn't admit this to him, but I secretly loved how normal it was to be quibbling with him. He slung an arm around my shoulder, and I curled up into him, enjoying the first bit of happiness we would have over the next several months.

But of course, all good things must come to an end.

 **The next book in the series is called _Witching Hour_ , and I'll have it up soon, so stay tuned!**


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